Arsenal dropped points for the first time this season as they drew 1-1 at home with Brighton, in a game dominated by poor refereeing decisions.
Referee Chris Kavanagh became public enemy number one at the Emirates Stadium with a series of poor decisions led to Arsenal dropping points from a winning position.
Kai Havertz gave Arsenal the lead in the first half with an excellent strike, but Declan Rice and Thomas Partey both picked up yellow cards.
Rice was then given a second yellow card after Brighton defender Joel Veltman kicked the ball at him, Rice moved the ball with the softest of touches, and Veltman lashed out and kicked the midfielder.
Arsenal fans could not believe the red card decision, and Bukayo Saka labelled it as “harsh,” and it was incredibly poor refereeing from Kavanagh.
Mikel Arteta has highlighted the lack of consistency in decisions, especially given that Brighton’s Joao Pedro was not punished for kicking the ball away in the first half, and the rules of the game show that Kavanagh has had a truly woeful performance.
Referee Chris Kavanagh failed to apply FA rules over Declan Rice and Joao Pedro
In the FA rulebook on refereeing decisions, law 12 over fouls and misconduct highlights when players should be cautioned for kicking the ball away:
Referees must caution players who delay the restart of play by:
- appearing to take a throw-in but suddenly leaving it to a team-mate to take
- delaying leaving the field of play when being substituted
- excessively delaying a restart
- kicking or carrying the ball away, or provoking a confrontation by deliberately touching the ball after the referee has stopped play
- taking a free kick from the wrong position to force a retake
In the first half, Pedro kicked the ball away on the touchline, which sent the ball to the opposite end of the pitch. This could count as excessively delaying the restart, and should have resulted in a yellow card, and could also have fulfilled the fourth requirement.
In Rice’s second yellow, the ball was played toward the Englishman, who moved it slightly with a flick, and it was Veltman’s lashing out that caused the delay, rather than the placement of where Rice moved the ball.
Chris Kavanagh did not apply ‘common sense’ rules in Arsenal draw
While some have argued that Rice touched the ball after the whistle for the foul had gone, the deliberate action is subjective. If Rice had booted the ball away in the same manner that Pedro did earlier in the game, a card would have been fair.
However, the ball was rolled at Rice, and hit the back of his legs before he moved it with his foot. If Veltman had not done this, Rice would not have touched the ball.
The International Football Association Board (IFAB) rulebook clearly states that referees have to apply “common sense” to decisions.
“Referees are expected to use common sense and to apply the ‘spirit of the game’ when applying the Laws of the Game,” it is stated.
Rice moving the ball less than a metre with his foot, before being kicked by Veltman, was not a case of Rice deliberately trying to waste time, and even though he did then touch the ball, Kavanagh failed to follow the IFAB guidance on applying common sense to decisions.
It is not in the interest of the game to penalise such small offences, and given that the red card came in the 49th minute, it had a major impact on the game, and will have a key knock-on effect in the title race as Arsenal are now without Rice for the North London Derby.
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