MX23RW : Monday, May 20 02:33:00| >> :120:14060:14060:

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta escapes punishment for Newcastle outburst

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta escapes punishment for Newcastle outburst
© Reuters
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta escapes punishment over his post-match outburst in last month's 1-0 Premier League defeat to Newcastle United.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has escaped punishment over his post-match outburst in last month's 1-0 Premier League defeat to Newcastle United.

The Gunners lost their unbeaten top-flight streak at St James' Park, where Anthony Gordon scored the only goal of the contest, but that was one of a couple of incidents shrouded in controversy.

During the build-up to Newcastle's goal, Arsenal players believed the ball had gone out of play, but Joe Willock had just about kept the attack alive before sending a cross into the six-yard box, which David Raya missed.

Joelinton then towered above compatriot Gabriel Magalhaes to head the ball down for Gordon, who was deemed to have been onside and fired home from a yard out to inflict Arsenal's first top-flight loss of the season upon them.

The VAR room undertook three separate VAR checks to determine whether the ball had stayed in play, whether Gabriel was fouled and whether Gordon was indeed onside, and the officials in Stockley Park ultimately saw no reason to disallow the Englishman's effort.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta reacts in November 2023© Reuters

Arsenal were also incensed when an apparent elbow from Bruno Guimaraes onto the head of Jorginho went unpunished, and a seething Arteta did not bite his tongue while speaking to the media after the game.

The Spaniard labelled the standard of officiating "embarrassing" and "a disgrace" and claimed that he "felt sick" by the decisions that went against his side, before being backed up by Arsenal themselves in a strongly-worded statement.

Arteta unsurprisingly landed himself in hot water with the FA, who charged him with a breach of FA Rule E3.1, accusing the 41-year-old of using insulting language which brought the game into disrepute.

The case was passed on to an independent commission ahead of a potential fine or touchline ban for Arteta, but it has been concluded that the Spaniard's comments did not constitute a breach of FA Rule E3.1.

As a result, Arteta has escaped punishment for his St James' Park rant, as the commission determined that the Arsenal manager was not attacking or questioning the integrity of match officials, and the words he used did not cross the line.

Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta pictured on December 12, 2023© Reuters

The panel have also concluded that Arteta's comments were targeted at the general use of VAR in the Premier League, which has been lambasted by a plethora of top-flight head coaches since its implementation.

As part of their written reasons for clearing Arteta, the commission stated that Arteta's view on VAR represented a "personal opinion" on a matter which the Premier League had already accepted was "deficient" and required major improvement.

The commission's summing-up stated that Arteta's words were not detrimental to the best interests of the game and did not bring the game into disrepute, allowing the former Gunners midfielder to return to the touchline for Sunday's clash with Brighton & Hove Albion.

Arteta watched last weekend's 1-0 loss to Aston Villa from the director's box after picking up his third yellow card of the season in the Gunners' pulsating 4-3 win over Luton Town, where he was penalised for excessively celebrating Declan Rice's 97th-minute header.

Arsenal sit second in the table heading into gameweek 17 and are only one point adrift of Liverpool, who take on Manchester United in the weekend's blockbuster clash.

ID:531371:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect5466:

Click here for more stories about Mikel Arteta

Click here for more stories about Arsenal

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Kieran Tierney in action for Arsenal on November 3, 2022
Read Next:
Aston Villa to rival Newcastle for Kieran Tierney?
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CManchester CityMan City38287396346291
2Arsenal38285591296289
3Liverpool382410486414582
4Aston Villa382081076611568
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs382061274611366
6Chelsea381891177631463
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle381861485622360
8Manchester UnitedMan Utd38186145758-160
9West Ham UnitedWest Ham381410146074-1452
10Crystal Palace381310155758-149
11Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton381212145562-748
12Bournemouth38139165467-1348
13Fulham38138175561-647
14Wolverhampton WanderersWolves38137185065-1546
15Everton38139164051-1140
16Brentford38109195665-939
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3899204967-1832
RLuton TownLuton3868245285-3326
RBurnley3859244178-3724
RSheffield UnitedSheff Utd38372835104-6916


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!