Arsenal found themselves involved in refereeing controversy yet again, as Leandro Trossard was sent off in their draw at Manchester City.
Trossard was on a yellow card at the end of the first half at the Etihad Stadium when he charged into Bernardo Silva, and booted the ball a second later as referee Michael Oliver blew for a foul.
Oliver then handed a second yellow card to the Arsenal star, with the reasoning that he had delayed the restart given. This was the same offence that saw Declan Rice dismissed against Brighton, with Arsenal going on to draw both games with 10 men.
Some Arsenal fans claimed that the decision was unfair based on consistency, as Jeremy Doku was not punished for a similar offence earlier on in the game, and some have also called for referees to be more lenient when it comes to dismissing players for this offence.
Arsenal may feel hard done by over the decision, which arguably cost them victory as they were 2-1 up at the time, but an independent panel has now given their verdict, and they were not sympathetic to the fans’ frustration.
Independent panel rules Leandro Trossard red card was the correct decision
An independent panel of three former Premier League players or coaches, one Premier League official and one PGMOL official, judged decisions made over key match incidents, and Trossard’s red card was examined by the panel.
Out of five panellists, four agreed with Oliver’s decision to dismiss Trossard, with the verdict that his action of booting the ball into the air was clearly delaying the restart.
However, one panellist voted against, with the lack of time between Oliver’s whistle and Trossard’s action of kicking the ball a mitigating factor.
Overall, it was deemed that the red card was a fair one, in a ruling which may annoy some Arsenal fans, but the reality is that Trossard should have done better.
Leandro Trossard’s error during Man City red card
Whilst inconsistency in refereeing decisions has affected Arsenal badly before, in this case Trossard has little cause for complaint.
With just seconds on the clock before half time, Trossard barging into Bernardo Silva was completely unnecessary, and this could arguably have been a yellow card in itself.
Whilst there was little time between the whistle and him booting the ball, he should not have booted it in the first place. If he took a touch or played a clear pass, he may have had more justification that he did not delay the restart.
Playing the ball the way he did gave the referee little choice but to dismiss him, and Trossard simply had to be more careful, especially considering his role as one of the more experienced players in the squad.