Former Newcastle United striker Michael Owen has taken issue with how Arsenal and Mikel Arteta have dealt with the aftermath of the Gunners’ recent loss to the Tyneside outfit.
Newcastle United scraped a 1-0 win against Arsenal on Saturday by virtue of a controversial goal. After the match, in a furious rant, Mikel Arteta raged against the refereeing decision that allowed the hosts’ goal to stand.
There were three points of contention with the goal, all reviewed and ultimately cleared by VAR. First, the ball looked to have gone out of play, then Gabriel Magalhaes appeared to get fouled in the box, before finally the ball dropped to goalscorer Anthony Gordon in what may have been an offside position.
In his post-match press conference, Arteta was quizzed about his thoughts on the decision. The Spanish coach did not hold back in his response, saying, “it’s not a goal, for many reasons it’s not a goal, for more than one reason at least it’s not a goal. And there’s too much at stake here, we put in so much effort, and it’s so difficult to compete at this level. And it’s an absolute disgrace. Again, I feel embarrassed, I’ve be more than 20 years in this country, and this is nowhere near the level to describe this as the best league in the world,” as quoted by the club’s official website.
On Sunday, Arsenal put out an official club statement in support of Arteta.
Arsenal and Mikel Arteta pile pressure on PGMOL
Of course, none of this will undo the perceived injustice of the Newcastle goal being given. Arsenal lost, bringing the north London club’s unbeaten start to the Premier League season to an end. However, this statement has added more weight to the pressure that is building on the PGMOL.
Every week, seemingly, the incompetence of Premier League officials is highlighted by another error or questionable call. Putting any and all club biases aside, few football fans would argue that the standard of refereeing in this country doesn’t need to improve.
That being said, not everyone was enamoured with the way Arteta lashed out against this decision. Whilst Jamie Carragher admired Arteta’s passion, Michael Owen was less than impressed with the coach and Arsenal’s actions as a club.
Taking to Twitter, the former striker said, “the only (in his words) ‘embarrassing’ and ‘disgraceful’ thing about it was Arteta’s behaviour. A common occurrence that damages the game more than any incorrect decision. For his club to now release a statement moaning about the standard of officiating is poor and sadly for a team of Arsenals standing, totally classless.”
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