Arsenal dropped crucial points in the Premier League as Brighton claimed a draw at the Emirates following Declan Rice’s controversial red card.
With new signing Raheem Sterling watch on from the stands following his loan from Chelsea, Kai Havertz broke the deadlock with a lobbed finish before half-time
But Arsenal’s advantage was lost as Rice was sent off for a second yellow card after half time, as the midfielder kicked the ball away when Brighton’s Joel Veltman prepared to take a free-kick.
The Seagulls then equalised as Joao Pedro fired into an empty net after David Raya saved from Yankuba Minteh.
Both sides had chances to extend their winning starts to the season, with Havertz and Bukayo Saka missing golden opportunities on the counter-attack, while Raya had a big save to deny Yasin Ayari.
Follow all the action in the live blog below:
Arsenal face title race pressure already after Declan Rice’s moment of madness
In a Premier League title race of inches, Arsenal and Declan Rice may have already handed Manchester City a huge advantage. It’s only August, but there was an edge in the air at the Emirates long before Rice’s controversial red card in this 1-1 draw against Brighton, with additional heat to the post-match fury as Mikel Arteta reflected on a thunderous afternoon that was far more “emotional” than usual for this early stage of the season.
After losing out on the Premier League title by two points last season, Arsenal know how perfect you have to be to beat Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City to the title. And this was an opportunity missed, with crucial points dropped already, as Arsenal squandered their winning position so needlessly. Rice’s sending off – his first in the Premier League in 245 appearances – changed the game after Kai Havertz’s fine lob handed Arsenal a deserved lead before half time.
‘He’s played the referee and it’s worked’: Peter Crouch explains theatrics behind Declan Rice’s red card
Rice had collected a yellow card in the first half for a heavy tackle on Veltman and received a second for kicking the ball away as the Brighton defender attempted to take a quick free kick in the second half.
Speaking as a pundit on TNT Sports former Liverpool striker Crouch was convinced that Veltman had bought an offence from Rice which changed the outcome of the match.
Why was Declan Rice sent off against Brighton?
Kai Havertz’s opening goal had sent the Gunners into the lead and the score was 1-0 when Rice was shown the red card early in the second half.
Rice had previously arrived late with a tackle on Veltman in the first half which saw him clip the defender’s leg and earn a first yellow of the match.
FT Arsenal 1-1 Brighton
The points are shared at the Emirates Stadium:
FT Arsenal 1-1 Brighton
It’s unclear at this point how costly that red card will be for Arsenal. It was undoubtably the deciding factor in the game with the Gunners dropping two points after Joao Pedro’s equaliser when they went down to 10-men.
Adding to that Declan Rice will be suspended for their next fixture against Tottenham Hotspur after the international break too.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta bemoans ‘inconsistency’ after Declan Rice’s controversial red card
Arsenal dropped points following a 1-1 draw at home to Brighton, where the midfielder was shown the first red card of his career in the second half.
Mikel Arteta bemoans ‘inconsistency’ after Declan Rice’s controversial red card
Mikel Arteta bemoaned the lack of “consistency” in refereeing decisions as he offered his verdict on Declan Rice’s controversial red card. Arsenal dropped points following a 1-1 draw at home to Brighton, where the midfielder was shown the first red card of his career in the second half. Rice was given his marching orders by referee Chris Kavanagh after he subtly kicked the ball away from a Brighton free-kick – resulting in a second yellow. “If that happens throughout the game in a consistent way then that’s fine, but it didn’t,” Arteta said at full-time. “In the first half there were a number of occasions where they kicked the ball away and nothing happened, so it’s the inconsistency.”
FT Arsenal 1-1 Brighton
In his 245th Premier League appearance, Declan Rice has been shown a red card in the competition for the first time.
Arteta speaking to MOTD
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, speaking to MOTD: “Overall when we played against 11 v 11 we deserved to win the game and 11 v 10 we deserved to win the game. We lost two points.”
Giving his thoughts on sending off, he added: “I was amazed. In the first half when the opponents did that they didn’t get any booking. He makes the call by law in a non critical area of the pitch when the ball hit the heel when turning around, to make that decision. By law he can do it but be consistent. If that is the case they should have a man sent off and then it is 10 v 10.
“Amazing, the team and the reaction of the crowd [after going a man down]. We created two big chances one v one and we should have won the game.”
Up next
Both sides will look to shake off that result ahead of their next match, but with the international break following this round of fixtures, they’ll have plenty of time to do that.
Arsenal’s next match isn’t until 15 September, but it’s a huge one – a north London derby away at Spurs, with kick-off at 2pm.
Their next two matches after that are both cup games, as they open their league cup campaign against Bolton before travelling to Bergamo to face Atalanta in their first match of the newly revamped Champions League.
For Brighton, their next match is at home to Ipswich on 14 September, before they host Wolves in the Carabao Cup in midweek.
Hurzeler speaks to MOTD
Hurzeler is understandably the happier of the two managers.
“In the end you are one man plus so you always want to win the game. We had chances on our side but Arsenal also had two big chances,” he said.
“First of all he shoots the ball away so it is a clear yellow card, it changes the momentum of the game,” he added.
“We started to control the game and then the goal happens out of nowhere. We didn’t defend it well, the red card changed the game for sure. We wanted to win, we didn’t do it so we have to be satisfied with the draw.
“There’s still room for a lot of improvements. We try and go step-by-step.”
Source: independent.co.uk
