Arsenal title warning, Haaland retrospective ban - Mikel Arteta sent glaring red card verdict
Arsenal have had two red cards in their last three Premier League games. Both for the same thing - a second yellow for kicking the ball away.
The Gunners have been described as having learnt the 'dark arts' so far this season. Using delaying tactics to help them pick up points in their quest for Premier League glory.
But red cards could come back to haunt them. The Premier League have clamped down on these delaying tactics and further yellow cards - and then red - could really hurt Arsenal in challenging Manchester City for the title come the end of the season.
Manager Mikel Arteta seems unconcerned about the situation. He has backed his players to the hilt, something you would expect from the best in the game. He will not throw his players under the bus in public, he needs them onside, to run through brick walls for him, if Arsenal are to be successful.
He has plainly seen what happens when you kick the ball away, or "pass the ball away" as he described it on Tuesday. He has even made jokes about telling his players to "play without the ball". But that does not mean he has to take the same stance behind the scenes.
Should Arteta be warning his players of their actions moving forward? After all, you can argue that those two red cards have cost Arsenal four points - they were leading in both games the went a man down before eventually drawing.
READ MORE: Red card decision, new punishment - Erling Haaland Man City ban verdict after Arsenal outburst
READ MORE: Leandro Trossard Arsenal red card controversy already exposed after Michael Oliver Man City call
What should Arteta be telling his players in the dressing room? We asked our football.london writers to have their say on the situation at the Emirates Stadium...
Lee Wilmot
Witnessing Gabriel Martinelli go down with cramp, not get the game stopped and then sprint around as Manchester City attacked really riled me up. Seeing Michael Oliver tell Jurrien Timber to get to his feet one moment and then stopping the game the next as City attacked did similarly.
You know you're having an effect when these so-called dark arts get under people's skin. Arsenal are a force to be reckoned with, and just like so many other big teams before them, the way they conduct themselves in order to eke out every little bit of an advantage is going to upset people. Kudos to them.
However, what Mikel Arteta is saying in public should be very different to what he's saying to his players in private. Arsenal simply cannot afford to keep getting yellow and red cards for silly things like kicking the ball away.
No matter how much he tries to dress it up, both Rice and Trossard were guilty and stupid for doing what they did. He may talk about consistency, but that's not a matter for discussion here.
Red cards probably mean fines in most dressing rooms. What Arteta should be doing is increasing those fines for players getting cards for kicking the ball away. Trossard should be fined and Arteta needs to clamp down before it hurts them big time in the Premier League title race.
It's unnecessary and hugging your player when he gets sent off for something so foolish while admirable in terms of looking after your players, can give off the wrong impression.
Tom Coley
Whether it's right or wrong, what Arteta is doing is effective. It brings together his team, it unites the only fanbase that actually matters to him, Arsenal's, and has a negative impact on rivals.
The method isn't pretty, it's not very sportspersonlike either, but that is sort of by the by. If this was your team, you'd love it. What must be said, though, is that ignoring the elements that Arsenal have actually gotten wrong here and not addressing them would be a mistake.
Arteta can publicly come out and defend his players, criticise the referees, moan about dark arts, the schedule, injuries, and the rest, but action must be taken to sort out the issues at hand. Simply, Rice and Trossard got themselves sent off.
Inconsistency of the referees aside, the two players put themselves in silly positions and that cannot be excused. Arteta should be having a strong word with his players in private to sort this out. If it happens again then fine them, because this is the difference between winning and losing at the top level.
What is projected and what is reality need to be two very different things here for Arteta, because getting wound up into believing Arsenal are at the centre of a conspiracy will only be a distraction. It's what Jose Mourinho and Jurgen Klopp did so well for so long.
They came out boldly and stood by their players, wrapped them up, lashed out at everything else, but were fiercely grounded when it came to the analysis. If Arteta is the same then he will act on the mistakes his side have made.
Kieran Horn
Whether football fans like to admit or not, every Premier League team does everything they possibly can to secure three points at the weekend and Arsenal are no different. If that involves performing the so-called 'dark arts' of the game to gain an advantage, then so be it.
However, after just five games, Arsenal's opponents are cottoning onto it and therefore referees will as well. The best way to describe this scenario is actually to relate it towards simulation. As soon as a player dives and gets caught for it once, they will have a figurative asterisk next to their name whenever they go down in a dangerous area.
That is now seemingly the case with the Gunners and delaying the restart. Every time it happens, not matter how minimal, they will likely be punished because Arteta's players have unfortunately become associated with it. Because of exactly that, the Arsenal boss must tell his players to give officials absolutely no reason to dish out needless cards.
Arteta is always going to publicly defend his players and his defiant response to the two recent red cards showcased that clearly. However, behind-closed-doors, it is not the place to be naive and he needs to blatantly tell his squad they must not put themselves in these situations if Arsenal are to have any chance of winning the Premier League title.
Isaac Seelochan
I don't really get what Arsenal and Arteta gain out of having a more noble stance when it comes to certain parts of the game. Gaining plaudits from neutrals won't win you major titles.
All the top teams in history have used 'the dark arts.' Building a siege mentality is likely to be more of a help to the Gunners rather than something which hinders them too much.
Of course, there is a potential concern that emotions may get the better of Arsenal's players and that could cost them with more sendings off. But overall, I think Arteta's team are just about on the right side of this and it should make for a thrilling title race.
Sam Truelove
I couldn't help but smile when clips of Erling Haaland emerged on social media after the Man City vs Arsenal game. The Norwegian threw a ball at the back of Gabriel's head, told Mikel Arteta to stay humble and ran straight into Thomas Partey who tried - and failed - to block him.
I reference this because actions such as these would have riled up the Arsenal players and manager. Many Gunners supporters will be calling for Haaland to face retrospective action. But this may only be because fans feel aggrieved by the red cards shown to Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard in recent games.
I have no doubt in my mind that Arteta would have somewhat lectured his players on what to do and what not to do on the football pitch. There is a fine line, especially when you want to be competitive, and you could argue that Rice and Trossard were only shown their second yellow cards because of their passion and desire to win.
You must win football games within the rules, however, and Arteta should be reminding his squad of just that.
Isaac Johnson
I doubt Arteta will be telling his squad anything new or different after Sunday. He has been a manager who has backed his players all the way and has never thrown anyone under the bus, even when it is obvious they were in the wrong.
Being so publicly supportive and then using the cane behind the scenes would create visible discord, so I don’t think that is happening. What you see publicly is also his private stance, whether he be suppressing his ultimate true emotions or not.
As seen with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, if someone isn’t toeing the line then they can expect to play no part in his plans rather than a mere quiet wrist-slap. In terms of kicking the ball away, both Rice and Trossard knew what they were doing and don’t need telling where they went wrong.
As for the ‘dark arts’ employed on Sunday, you would be naive to think that David Raya’s ‘cramp’ midway through the second half was not planned. Who, if anyone, offered him that instruction is unclear and so one must be careful to throw accusations at Arteta himself.
Admittedly, it is not the first time Arsenal have done it and at the very least we can say such tactics happen on his watch - he hasn’t made it one of his priorities to clamp down on it either. But the Gunners are far from not the only team to implement such gamesmanship methods.
Is it morally right? No. Will Arteta care if it leads to Arsenal winning the league? Absolutely not.