Arsenal fans were furious as Declan Rice was controversially sent off in their draw against Brighton, but their manager does not understand the frustration.
Rice was given a second yellow card for allegedly delaying the restart after a free-kick when Brighton defender Joel Veltman decided to kick the midfielder.
Referee Chris Kavanagh sent Rice off despite failing to punish Brighton attacker Joao Pedro for a worse offence, and Mikel Arteta was furious at the lack of consistency in the decisions.
Bukayo Saka also highlighted the contrasting decisions in each incident, but Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has now disagreed, and praised the decision.
Fabian Hurzeler claims Declan Rice red card was a fair decision
Speaking after the game, Huerzeler dismissed any comparisons between Pedro and Rice for the ways in which they kicked the ball away, and claimed that Rice deserved to be dismissed.
“Clear red card. He shoots the ball away. If Arsenal think otherwise, there are now two opinions,” he stated of Rice.
When asked about João Pedro kicking ball away, Hurzeler was defiant in his response.
“You can’t compare the two situations. Please don’t compare the two situations,” he added.
Arsenal fans furious at Fabian Hurzeler after Declan Rice comments
Arsenal fans are understandably furious, and have now criticised Hurzeler for his dismissive attitude over the controversial decisions which clearly favoured his side.
“Nobody will remember who this guy is in 18 months,” one fan retorted.
“Would have great respect for him if he was honest. But if he honestly feels that way then I can’t imagine he’ll last too long,” a more level-headed Arsenal fan pointed out.
“I didn’t have much of an opinion on Fabian Hurzeler before today. Coming out of today, I have zero respect for him. He whines on the sidelines and gives embarrassing answers to questions,” a fan stated, in reference to Hurzeler receiving a yellow card in the first half.
Arsenal have now dropped points as a result of the decisions, and fans will certainly remember Hurzeler’s comments when the team next faces Brighton.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
