Arsenal defender Gabriel should have received a red card for headbutting Erling Haaland, a Premier League panel has concluded.
The Brazilian escaped a dismissal after nudging his forehead into the striker’s face during last month’s clash at the Etihad.
Neither referee Anthony Taylor nor the VAR John Brooks deemed the incident worthy of a red card, with both Gabriel and Haaland cautioned. Brooks decided that the headbutt was not ‘not excessively aggressive or violent’, so did not intervene.
Yet, the league’s key match incidents panel disagreed and voted 3:2 in favour of a dismissal, claiming that ‘the extra head movement forward from Gabriel’ should be seen as violent conduct.
The panel, however, voted 4:1 against a VAR intervention, as they felt the incident did not reach the threshold for a VAR intervention.
Gabriel would have been suspended for three matches if he had been sent off.
Gabriel headbutted Erling Haaland and should have been sent off, ruled a panel
When asked whether Arsenal are lucky that Gabriel is available for their crunch title run-in, Arteta said: ‘I don’t think we’re lucky.’
On if he was surprised of the panel’s verdict that the centre back should’ve been sent off, Arteta replied: ‘Yes’.
It was also unanimously ruled that Taylor was correct not to show a red card to Man City’s Abdukodir Khusanov. Kai Havertz went down under a challenge from Khusanov when running through on goal in the 53rd minute.
The panel noted that ‘Havertz is not in control of the ball and Khusanov makes shoulder-to-shoulder contact’.
