Mikel Arteta has slammed the VAR as Arsenal suffered their first defeat of the Premier League season at the hands of Newcastle United.
Mikel Arteta has had his say on the controversial decisions by the VAR that resulted in Newcastle United’s win over Arsenal on Sunday. The Arsenal manager was not happy with the decision and made it clear that it was a disgrace that Anthony Gordon’s winner stood despite VAR checks.
Arsenal were unbeaten in the league and were sitting second on the points table heading into this fixture against Newcastle. The Gunners were well aware of the fact that it was not going to be easy to win away against the Magpies.
While Arteta’s men dominated the ball, they did not manage enough shots on target. As a result, the North Londoners could not take the lead and gave the Magpies to opportunity to claim all three points.
In the 64th minute of the game, Joe Willock crossed the ball into the box which was aimed at Joelinton but it fortunately fell into the path of Anthony Gordon, who smashed it home. The goal was then subject to a VAR check for three possible problems.
🚨 Arteta, furious: “The result should not be what it is! It’s a disgrace”, told BBC.
“It’s embarrassing what happened”.
“How this goal stands, in the Premier League… this league we say is the best in the world. I have been 20 years in this country and now I feel ashamed”. pic.twitter.com/23s2jkzrLf
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) November 4, 2023
In the end, the VAR decided that there was no proof that the ball had gone out of play before Willock crossed it. And, ut was also ruled that Joelinton had not committed a foul on Gabriel while he tried to win the ball in the air. Even Gordon was judged onside, as a result, the goal stood.
However, multiple clips suggest that those decisions might not be 100% on point. Arteta certainly thinks that the goal should not have stood and he has made his frustration known. He feels that the level of officiating in the Premier League is not the best and such decisions are embarrassing.
Arteta on the decision by VAR via The Guardian, “Embarrassing, it’s an absolute disgrace, that’s what it is: a disgrace. There’s so much at stake, we’ve put in so many hours to compete at the highest level and you cannot imagine the amount of messages we’ve had saying this cannot continue. It’s embarrassing.”
“It’s not acceptable, there’s too much at stake. I don’t want to be in the hands of these people. I don’t know how to feel. I’m wasting my time, we are wasting our time. It’s difficult enough to compete against Newcastle – they are a really good team, but we have to talk about how the hell this goal stood. It’s an absolute disgrace it was allowed. For more than one reason it should not be a goal.”
“I have been in this country more than 20 years and [the officiating] is nowhere near the level of the best league in the world. I feel sick to be part of this. I feel sick. It’s not a goal, it’s not a goal.”
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The defeat resulted in Arsenal losing important points in the race to the Premier League title. They now have 24 points out of their 11 league games with seven wins, three draws and a defeat. While they were not at their best against the Magpies, the Gunners didn’t deserve to lose. As a result, the VAR decision related to Gordon hasn’t gone down well with the players, the manager as well as the fans.
