Brighton and Hove Albion boss Fabian Hurzeler has dismantled Mikel Arteta’s comments over Declan Rice’s controversial red card.
On Saturday afternoon, Arsenal played to a 1-1 draw at home against Brighton, with Kai Havertz’s initial goal being equalized by Joao Pedro. Early in the second half, Arsenal was down to 10 players when referee Chris Kavanagh controversially issued a second yellow card to Rice.
Fans were outraged when replays revealed that Joel Veltman of Brighton had kicked the ball away from Declan Rice, missing him entirely. It later became clear that Rice had actually nudged the ball away to delay the restart.
After the match, Arsenal manager Arteta commented: “We came out strong in the second half, but the referee’s decision changed the game’s outcome. We probably should have won, but I was stunned—stunned, stunned, stunned—by how inconsistent the decisions were. In the first half, there were two incidents where nothing was called, yet in a critical moment, the ball hit Declan’s heel, and he didn’t see the player before touching the ball. By the letter of the law, the call was justifiable, but at this level, it’s truly remarkable.”
Arteta pointed to an incident in the first half where Brighton’s Joao Pedro avoided a booking after kicking the ball away when it went out of play.
In response, Brighton manager Hurzeler said, “To me, it’s a clear red card. He kicked the ball away, which is wasting time, so there are differing views. You can’t compare these two situations. The first, with Joao, was a clear and static situation, like a free kick, while the second was dynamic. Joao was trying to keep the ball in play. Please, don’t compare them because in football, no two situations are ever the same.”
