Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has now escaped punishment from the FA for comments he made after a defeat to Newcastle.
The Spaniard was furious after Arsenal fell to defeat at St James’ Park courtesy of an Anthony Gordon goal which should have arguably been disallowed.
Arteta was then charged by the FA for his comments, which were also slammed by pundits, and after a long wait, Arteta has now learned that he will not face any action over what he said.
What Mikel Arteta said to earn a charge from FA
Speaking after the defeat to Newcastle, Arteta angrily slammed the match officials for allowing the Gordon goal after Joelinton had pushed defender Gabriel Magalhaes in the build-up.
“Embarrassing, it’s an absolute disgrace, that’s what it is: a disgrace,” Arteta stated at full time.
“There’s so much at stake, we’ve put in so many hours to compete at the highest level and you cannot imagine the amount of messages we’ve had saying this cannot continue. It’s embarrassing.”
Given that he was facing a potential touchline ban for his comments, he will now be relieved that he will be able to return to the dugout, having watched Arsenal’s defeat to Aston Villa from the stands after picking up three yellow cards.
Why did Mikel Arteta escape punishment for his comments?
The FA have released a statement confirming that Arteta will face no further action for his comments after the Newcastle defeat, and gave reasoning for the decision.
They have claimed that Arteta did not breach FA rule E3 over aggravated breaches of conduct, as his comments did not directly attack their performances, integrity or impartiality.
It has also been claimed that Arteta’s use of the word “disgrace” was misconstrued, and he intended to use the Spanish word “desgracia,” with “connotations of misfortune, tragedy or bad luck rather than the connotations of the English equivalent, which suggest contempt, dishonour or disrespect.”
As per their statement, they now believe that Arteta’s frustrations in the heat of the moment were directed towards VAR and its implementation as a whole, rather than directly attacking the match officials, and therefore did not constitute a breach of the rules.
His words were viewed as “strong,” but as they did not damage the wider interests of football, the image of the game, or bring it into disrepute, he was not deemed worthy of a punishment, and they do not believe his conduct was “improper in any way.”
Arsenal are set to face Brighton at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, and Arteta will now be back on the touchline knowing that he is not set to receive a ban.
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