Mikel Arteta fumes at Sunderland penalty despite Arsenal's win: Unacceptable
Mikel Arteta was left furious with the refereeing despite Arsenal maintaining their perfect Premier League start with a hard-fought 2-0 win over Sunderland on Saturday.
Arsenal were made to work for all three points at the Stadium of Light, with David Raya producing a crucial save to keep out Enzo Le Fee’s penalty early in the second half. Bruno Guimaraes then broke the deadlock just two minutes later before Bukayo Saka sealed the win from the spot in stoppage time.
The victory gave Arsenal four wins from four in the league and kept them at the top of the table. However, Arteta’s attention after the game was firmly on the penalty decision that went against his side.
Referee John Brooks awarded Sunderland a spot-kick after Ezri Konsa was penalised for pulling Dan Ballard during a corner. Arteta strongly disagreed with the call and questioned how the incident could have been deemed a penalty.
“It was a huge win but it could have been something very different,” Arteta told TNT Sports.
“It’s unacceptable at this level. This can change the course of a season and the championship. It’s not acceptable. I’ve seen it 10 times to make sure and it’s not possible at this level that it can be a penalty. It cannot happen.
“It’s not a penalty in any context, in any league.”
ARSENAL DIG DEEP
The result was far from a routine Arsenal performance. Sunderland’s energy, physicality and persistence caused problems for the visitors, who were forced to defend for long spells.
Raya proved crucial when he pushed Le Fee’s penalty onto the post in the 55th minute. Arsenal responded almost immediately, with Guimaraes coming off the bench at half-time to make a decisive impact.
The Brazil midfielder received the ball from Declan Rice before curling a superb right-footed effort into the top corner to put Arsenal ahead.
Sunderland continued to threaten, but Arsenal’s defence held firm to secure another clean sheet. The Gunners have now kept four clean sheets in their five matches across competitions since the start of the season, including their Champions League victory over Napoli in midweek.
Arteta was particularly pleased with the character shown by his players.
“It’s unbelievable the spirit and the courage we have to go again and again and again,” he said. “So pleased in one sense and so worried in another.
“David Raya was unbelievable. He is a player that decides football matches when we need it.”
The Arsenal boss also acknowledged Sunderland’s contribution to a difficult contest. “They deserve a lot of credit for the way they make it so hard for you,” he added.
– Ends
