Mikel Arteta ‘surprised’ by Declan Rice’s controversial red card

Mikel Arteta said he was “surprised” by Declan Rice’s sending off in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Brighton on Saturday and called for more consistency in refereeing.

Rice was sent off in the 50th minute after referee Chris Kavanagh issued a second yellow card for what the Premier League later explained as “delaying the restart of play” after pushing the ball out of the way of Joel Veltman as he looked to take a free-kick, leading to a clash between the pair.

Veltman kicked Rice instead of the ball, and Arteta claimed he should have been punished while also citing Joao Pedro who escaped a booking for kicking the ball away in the first half.

“I was surprised,” Arteta said. “I was surprised, astonished, astonished at how inconsistent the decisions were. In the first half, there were two incidents and nothing happened.

“Then, in a non-critical area, the ball hits Declan (on the back of his leg), he turns, doesn’t see the oncoming player and touches the ball.

“By the law he can make that decision, but by the law he has to make the next decision, which is the red card, so we play 10 against 10. That’s what amazed me. At this level, it’s amazing.”

Brighton manager Fabian Hurtsler has dismissed Arteta’s comparison between Rice’s sending-off and the Pedro incident.

“You can’t compare the two situations. It’s a free kick, it’s a set situation,” he said.

“The other situation is a dynamic situation. It wasn’t even clear. We can never compare these situations. The two situations can never be the same, so they can’t be compared.”

However, Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka reiterated his manager’s desire for consistency.

“I thought it was a bit harsh for us. We just want some consistency. Joao Pedro hit the ball in the middle of the pitch in the first half and didn’t get anything for it, and Deck got the slightest touch and got sent off,” he told TNT Sports.

Arsenal took the lead seven minutes before half-time after a brilliant pass from Saka to Kai Havertz who chipped the ball over Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen.

Brighton took advantage of their numerical superiority and equalised in the 58th minute when Joao Pedro turned the ball into the net after David Raya had saved Yankuba Minteh’s shot.

After Saka and Havertz missed late chances to win the game, Arsenal dropped points for the first time in the Premier League this season.

“We showed a lot of discipline,” Arteta said. “We reacted to what we had to do playing at home with 10 men. We didn’t want to defend so deep, but we read the game and played the way we had to play and we should have been rewarded.”