Mikel Arteta said he was “disappointed” by the decision to award a second-half penalty to Brighton as Arsenal were held to a 1-1 draw at the Amex Stadium on Saturday evening.
Arteta’s side aimed to close the gap on runaway Premier League leaders Liverpool, who face Manchester United on Sunday, but failed to claim all three points on the south coast despite taking a first-half lead -time thanks to teenager Ethan Nwaneri.
The Gunners were pegged back after the break as the hosts staged a spirited comeback. Fabian Hurzeler’s side were rewarded for their efforts when they were awarded a penalty after William Saliba attempted to head the ball but instead caught the head of striker Joao Pedro.
The Brazilian sent the penalty and from there Brighton wasted a few half-chances to win the game late on.
Share the points in Brighton.
An opportunity to quickly turn the page on Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/OvxH20cvqa
–Arsenal (@Arsenal) January 4, 2025
But the Gunners boss said referee Anthony Taylor’s decision to award the penalty was harsh.
“We are disappointed because we wanted to win the game,” Arteta told Sky Sports.
“We started the match with good actions and scored a very good goal. We knew it would be a very competitive and challenging match.
“But we competed. It wasn’t our best day, especially with the ball in the second half. We eliminated so many simple balls that they didn’t really allow us to dominate the match.
“I have no complaints about the effort, the intensity and how much we wanted it, but doing the simple things has to be fair against a very good team. Today was not to the height of the standards required to win the match.
“And we are very disappointed in the way he [referee Anthony Taylor] gave the penalty. I’ve never seen him in my life. For me, that’s a definite no.
An Arsenal victory would have brought them within three points of Liverpool. As things stand, the Gunners are currently five points behind Arne Slot’s side having played two games more.
But Arteta chose not to answer questions about his title rivals and instead focus on his own players.
“Today we wanted to win the game and we didn’t achieve it,” Arteta added.
“There are definitely things we need to improve on. We are also very disappointed with the [penalty] decision and, after that, we must try to be better in the next match.
Next up for the Gunners is the visit of in-form Newcastle in the first leg of the Carabao semi-final on Tuesday.
