Arsenal’s relationship with Premier League officials has been strained this season, largely due to controversial red cards. However, during a recent match against Southampton, something unexpected happened: three yellow cards were issued, but none were shown to Arsenal players. This marked the first domestic game of the season in which the Gunners avoided any bookings, following a similar clean record in the Champions League against Atalanta.
Arsenal’s interactions with referees, particularly after Mikel Arteta’s comments in press conferences, have gained attention. After Declan Rice was sent off against Brighton for a second yellow card, Arteta expressed his frustration, stating, “I was amazed. Amazed, amazed, amazed because of how inconsistent decisions can be.” He explained, “In the first half, there are two incidents and nothing happens. Then, in a non-critical area, the ball hits Declan, he turns around, he doesn’t see the player coming and he touches the ball. By law, he can make that call, but then by law, he needs to make the next call, which is a red card so we play 10 v 10. This is what amazed me. At this level, it’s amazing.”
Arteta further emphasized, “It’s not my job to come here and judge what happened. My job is to survive in the most difficult environment you can throw in football for 55 minutes. And try to get things done to survive. That’s my job, the rest is not my job.”
Arsenal is now ranked joint-eighth in the Premier League for yellow cards with 17, though Declan Rice’s and Leandro Trossard’s red card incidents do not count toward this tally. Without those exclusions, Arsenal would be joint-fourth with 21. Chelsea leads the chart with 27 yellows, followed by Manchester United with 24, and Wolves with 22. Meanwhile, Manchester City also has 17, and Everton and Brentford have the fewest with 12.
Riccardo Calafiori has accumulated three yellow cards in all competitions this season, while Rice has four, with two of those turning into reds. Despite their rough start, Arsenal’s discipline seems to be improving as the season progresses.
