Some Arsenal fans on social media have been making their feelings known about the decision to bring Emile Smith Rowe off against Slavia Prague.
The midfielder was replaced in the 89th minute by Dani Ceballos as Arsenal looked to preserve their 1-0 advantage, but as we all know, it didn’t quite work out that way.
Indeed, a late equaliser from Slavia Prague broke the hearts of the Arsenal fanbase, and some fans believe that it was the decision to bring Smith Rowe off that directly contributed to their late collapse.
To be fair, we can understand where these fans are coming from, Arsenal looked to be in the ascendancy, but a negative switch invited more pressure, and in the end the Czech side were able to capitalise on that.
However, it may be a bit unfair to completely blame the goal on this substitution. Attempting to shore things up at the back late on is a tactic used by numerous managers late in games, and Smith Rowe had just played 89 minutes of high-intensity football.
Unfortunately, some Arsenal fans didn’t quite see it that way, and they had plenty to say about Arteta’s decision to bring Smith Rowe off.
Here’s what Arsenal supporters have been saying on social media…
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