Mikel Arteta is not prone to emotional post-game interviews, so his rage at VAR following Arsenal’s 1-0 loss to Newcastle on Saturday is noteworthy and then some.
Arteta, 41, said he was ‘embarrassed’ that Anthony Gordon’s 64th-minute winner was allowed to stand following a long Video Assistant Referee review, calling it ‘a disgrace.’
Gordon was judged to be onside as a part of a three-part review involving a Joelinton shove on Gabriel Magalhaes as well as Joe Willock’s rescue of a ball off the end line that potentially crossed it.
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“I feel sick to be part of this,” Arteta said after the game in a furious press conference. “How the hell this goal stands up. I feel embarrassed. It is an absolute disgrace that this goal is allowed.”
The most egregious of the possible fouls was Joelinton’s leap to head the ball over Magalhaes, which saw the Newcastle man put two hands into the back of the stooping Arsenal man, no doubt affecting a clearance attempt.
Willock’s ball rescue and Gordon’s possible offside were trickier calls. Goal line technology only supports the line between the posts, and Wilson’s play came near the corner, while it’s difficult to spot the ball when Gordon rose for his header.
Arsenal was undefeated in the Premier League, entering the game with seven wins and three draws.
Mikel Arteta reaction: VAR ruling ‘a disgrace’ and ‘waste of my time’
“There’s so much at stake, we put [in] so many hours. I am here to represent the football club and get my team competing at the highest level possible. The margins are so small. It’s a disgrace, it’s embarrassing. That’s how I fell and how everyone feels in that room. You cannot imagine the amount of messages I got saying this cannot continue. It’s embarrassing.
“I have to be here now to say it is not acceptable. ... I don’t know how to feel. I am wasting my time. We are wasting our time. I don’t want to be in the hands of people. It’s difficult enough to compete against this team. It cannot continue. It’s embarrassing. There’s too much at stake. The consequences are too big.”
It was really surprising that the goal stood, especially given the video evidence showing Joelinton shoving an airborne Magalhaes. It seems this will require more explanation from PGMOL.
