Mikel Arteta had his unbeaten start to the season halted at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday.
Bournemouth handed the Gunners a 2-0 loss as Mikel Arteta’s men fell four points behind league leaders Liverpool.
Arsenal fans will have every right to be aggrieved after a controversial decision took the game out of their hands. William Saliba was sent off after a foul on Evanilson who was through on goal.
The referee initially handed out a yellow, but VAR called him to review the incident, after which he showed a straight red to the French defender.
Goals from Justin Kluivert and Ryan Christie late in the second were enough to hand the Gunners their first taste of defeat this season.
Bournemouth v Arsenal Premier League 19/10/2024. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta gestures as William Saliba 2 of Arsenal walks off after being shown a is shown a red card, sent off during the Premier League match between Bournemouth and Arsenal at the Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth, England on 19 October 2024. Bournemouth Vitality Stadium Dorset England Editorial use only DataCo restrictions apply See www.football-dataco.com , Copyright: xGrahamxHuntx PSI-20632-0048
Saturday’s game was the third time Arsenal have had a player sent off in the Premier League this season.
Declan Rice was sent off against Brighton early in the season. A decision which the referee did not agree with when the VAR audio was revealed.
Leandro Trossard also received his marching orders after kicking the ball away during the Manchester City game. Mikel Arteta has every right to be furious with these decisions, but insists it cannot keep happening:
“Playing with 10 men, obviously there is an issue. The truth is you analyse the three very different actions and the outcome of them, the reasons are very different. Regardless of that, we cannot continue to play with 10 men, especially at this level. You see how much of a struggle it is for all of the teams to win football matches. When you want to do it with 10 men for 65 minutes, the task becomes impossible so we need to eradicate that. It’s clear why, the reasons and how. It doesn’t matter, we have to focus that it has to happen.”
Arsenal have played three games in the league where they have had a player sent off. They drew against Brighton after Declan Rice’s sending off , held Manchester City to a draw after Trossard’s second yellow. They lost to Bournemouth after Saliba was given a straight red.
In the five games Arsenal have played with 11 men for 90 minutes, they have won all games. Because of this, Thomas Partey has urged his teammates to keep their heads in upcoming games.
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