Iconic former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes felt that one Arsenal star let himself down recently.
Arsenal’s recent encounter with Manchester City included numerous flashpoints.
Mikel Arteta’s side were able to provoke the ire of the reigning champions during their trip to the Etihad Stadium.
In the wake of the match, John Stones called Arsenal “dirty,” whilst Bernardo Silva took a swipe at Arteta’s tactics.
There was frustration for both sides though. One Arsenal board member stormed off at the end of the game without shaking hands with any of the Manchester City hierarchy.
On top of that, the sending off of Leandro Trossard also proved controversial. Arteta took issue with the referee’s decision.
On the stroke of half-time, the £27 million former Brighton man was shown a second yellow card for kicking the ball away after conceding a free kick, therefore delaying the restart.
Paul Scholes takes aim at Arsenal ace Leandro Trossard
Whilst Trossard might argue that there was such a brief period between referee Michael Oliver’s whistle and him striking the ball that he did not have time to react, Paul Scholes is convinced that the Arsenal man knew exactly what he was doing.
Speaking on The Overlap, the Manchester United icon said: “It was stupid. Ridiculous, really, kicking the ball away. You just can’t do it, can you? He even could’ve got done for the foul. It was a stupid foul, really, bit of a nasty foul, they can hurt you.”
This is not the first time this season that the Gunners have been punished for committing this offence. Declan Rice was sent off against Brighton for delaying a restart too.
Regardless of Arteta’s personal stance on the matter, the Spanish coach must now take action to stamp this bad habit out. He must make it abundantly clear to his players that they cannot afford to interact with the ball in any way once the referee has blown the whistle.
How Mikel Arteta will cope without Trossard vs Bolton
Due to his suspension, the Gunners will now be without Trossard for this evening’s EFL Cup clash against Bolton Wanderers.
It is possible that the Belgium international might have been rested for this fixture anyway, as Arteta will certainly see this encounter with League One opposition as an opportunity to rotate his squad. However, the decision to not play Trossard has now been taken out of his hands entirely.
The forward’s absence increases the odds that Raheem Sterling will get his first Arsenal start, and the Chelsea loanee will certainly be keen to impress.
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