Gary Neville was left shocked when no action was taken when Gabriel Martinelli took out Kaoru Mitoma during Arsenal’s 3-0 defeat to Brighton at the Emirates on Sunday.
The Arsenal winger was subbed after 20 minutes because of an injury, but the opening moments of the game were eventful for the 21-year-old.
Not only was Gabriel Martinelli on the end of a crunching tackle from Moises Caicedo, but he had flattened Kaoru Mitoma moments before, with Neville questioning whether it was a red card challenge, as he told Sky Sports Premier League (14/05/23).
There was a debate to be had about whether Martinelli should have seen red, but what was more surprising is that no card was issued, at all, by the on-field referee.
It was a pretty cagey encounter between the two sides, with Brighton taking control of the match after Arsenal’s bright start and then going on to end the London club’s chances of becoming champions of England.
When that is confirmed, and it could be by the weekend, then it’s going to be a bitter pill to swallow, with Neville sharing his thoughts on the Martinelli incident.
“It didn’t look clever the first time, I have to say,” said Neville. “He was never there to start with and it wasn’t his ball.
“Mitoma was always going to win it, so anything that he did was either going to be a head-on-head or an elbow or shoulder on head.
“That’s not great at all that. Is he not booking him?! WOW! That’s incredible. I don’t think I would have complained if it was a red card. Or have I lost my mind?!”
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Given that Arsenal, at one stage, had an eight-point lead over Manchester City, then this collapse in recent weeks is going to hurt the fans.
A number of their players have taken their game up a few levels, no more so than Martinelli, who has scored 15 Premier League goals this season.
Those are impressive numbers for a player that moved to England as a fresh-faced teenager from Brazil after he was unearthed from his country’s lower leagues by Edu Gaspar.
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