Two bad decisions. Refereeing is the main subject of debate in England after the draw conceded by Arsenal on the pitch of Atéltico de Madrid during the semi-final first leg of the Champions League. The first bad decision was to call a penalty against the Gunners for White’s hand. “The Champions League is by far the best football, but these decisions called for hands are a real shame for the competition. It was worse last night, but White should not have been punished.”for example commented Jamie Carragher.
The second is to have canceled the penalty, first whistled by the main referee, awarded to Eze for contact with Hancko. The video assistance prompted the referee to view the footage, and despite confirmation of contact, he decided to change his mind. “I don’t know why they canceled the penalty. It seems there was contact, but it’s their decision,” Gyokeres commented after the meeting. Martin Keown, a former Arsenal defender turned consultant, said Simeone played a role. “The referee should have been able to make the decision, and VAR interferes too much. The referee shouldn’t even have had to look at the screen. Under Simeone’s gaze, I think he gave in to the pressure. »
Mikel Arteta expressed his anger after the meeting, at the microphone of TNT Sports. “After going back to the locker room, talking to the guys and re-watching the penalty incident, I am extremely disappointed and annoyed because it was against the rules and it changes the course of the match. I’m really, really upset. The whole sequence. There is clear contact, you make a decision and you can’t go back on that decision after looking at it 13 times. This is totally unacceptable at this level. It’s a bad decision and it changes the course of the match. This cannot happen at this level. » Arsenal could have won with a second penalty, but it was Atlético who made a much better impression in the second half.
A new soothing offensive performance
Like in recent weeks, even months, the team led by Mikel Arteta was severely lacking in inspiration throughout the meeting. So yes, the block is solid, the defense in place, the permutations and compensations well-established, but in terms of creativity, we border on nothing. Nobody seems ready to take the slightest risk as soon as Arsenal arrive in the last 30 meters. Madueke tries to ride from time to time, Eze tries to shake his teammates out of torpor when he enters, but it was far too little, like the 2 shots on target in total!
Vindictive against the refereeing, Mikel Arteta was more understanding when discussing the performance of his players. “There were a lot of positives. We knew we would have difficult times, because Atlético has an incredible history and record against the best teams in the world. We knew we had to manage this, but we should have done better. We are in an incredible position. It’s all in our hands”he recalled. Indeed, Arsenal will host Atlético next Tuesday knowing that a victory would take them to the final.
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– UPDATE
