Mikel Arteta criticised the decision to award Sunderland a penalty as Arsenal maintained their perfect Premier League start with a 2-0 victory at the Stadium of Light on Saturday.
The visitors were eventually forced back on to the visitors’ own half when goalkeeper David Raya saved Enzo Le Fee’s penalty shortly after half time and turned the effort onto the post. The spot-kick was given after Sunderland corner man Ezri Konsa was deemed to be pulling Dan Ballard.
Arteta was not looking for such a call and was visibly upset by such a decision, believing that it could have a significant effect on the Premier League title race. The Arsenal manager repeated the incident in his head and found no reason for a penalty.
His worries were put to rest just a couple of minutes later as summer signing Bruno Guimaraes broke the deadlock. The Brazilian midfielder picked up a pass from Declan Rice then delivered a wonderful right footed shot into the top corner.
The hosts didn’t lose heart and continued to pose a threat to Arsenal forcing them to put up a spirited defence in the second half. But Arsenal showed the toughness which helped them win their first league championship in 22 years last season. The visitors would eventually put the game on ice in the dying moments. Reinildo Mandava had his name entered in the book for fouling Arsenal striker Bukayo Saka, who then snapped up the penalty.
With the win, Arsenal sit at 12 points in four games with a 100 per cent win rate. If Manchester United lose on Sunday, Manchester City will be able to join them on maximum points. The match was a further crucial test for Arsenal’s defensive spirit, and Arteta’s nitpicking at the penalty decision helped make an otherwise successful afternoon an interesting debate.
