Tempers will have flared at times as Arsenal tasted defeat for the first time this season against Bournemouth on Saturday evening.
Arsenal were beaten 2-0 on the south coast in this Premier League encounter, in a match that Mikel Arteta’s side handled poorly from start to finish.
The Gunners started badly, and were reduced to ten men on the half-hour mark. William Saliba was sent off for denying a goalscoring opportunity.
Whilst the Frenchman was guilty of committing a clear foul, the Gunners may feel somewhat aggrieved that he was given his marching orders, too. After all, referee Robert Jones only deemed offence to have been worthy of a yellow card.
However, after a VAR review, the official decided to revise his decision, and showed the 23-year-old the first red card of his career.
Whilst former Arsenal winger Theo Walcott believes Saliba deserved to go, the North London club’s goalkeeper, David Raya, was clearly less than convinced.
Arsenal’s David Raya takes aim at Premier League officials
From his vantage point between the sticks for the Gunners, Raya will have had the perfect view as to whether or not Saliba’s challenge denied a clear goalscoring opportunity.
Saliba certainly did tug back Bournemouth striker Evanilson, but the offence occurred a long way from goal, only marginally inside the Gunners’ own half.
Raya might feel that Ben White would have been able to cover, or that he himself could have collected the loose ball, though the Spaniard was back-pedalling towards his own goal as Evanilson was impeded.
In any case, the Euro 2024 winner made sure his opinion was heard by the referee. As reported by Sky Sports, as the players made their way towards the dressing rooms at half-time: “Raya remonstrates with the officials as they make their way towards the tunnel.”
Arsenal misery compounded vs Bournemouth
Although the Gunners were down to ten men, the game was still goalless at the break, and Arteta will have felt that his side stood a chance of going on to claim victory.
However, things went from bad to worse for the North London outfit in the second half. Gabriel Martinelli missed a golden opportunity, and Bournemouth took the lead via a set-piece goal.
Raya himself then conceded a penalty, after being played into trouble by Jakub Kiwior’s underhit pass. Justin Kluivert converted from the spot, sending the Arsenal shot-stopper the wrong way, and condemning Arteta’s men to defeat.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
