Mikel Arteta admitted he was “amazed” by Chris Kavanagh’s controversial decision to send off Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice in Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Brighton.
Kai Havertz put Arsenal ahead in the 38th minute, but Rice was dismissed for the first time in his Premier League career four minutes after half-time.
Referee Kavanagh showed Rice a second yellow card after the England international subtly kicked away the ball from a Brighton free-kick by the corner flag to delay the restart.
Adding to Arsenal’s frustration, no punishment was given to Joel Veltman, who kicked Rice as he tried to take a quick set-piece, leaving Rice and Gunners boss Arteta stunned.
Arsenal failed to hold on with 10 men as Joao Pedro equalised in the 58th minute at the Emirates Stadium.
Arteta bemoaned Kavanagh’s decision and appeared to suggest Pedro, who was later cautioned, should have been given a yellow card in the 18th minute when he kicked the ball away after it had gone out for a throw.
“I was amazed. Amazed, amazed, amazed because of how inconsistent decisions can be,” Arteta said.
“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 red card so we play 10 vs 10. This is what amazed me. At this level it’s amazing.”
Pedro’s leveller ended Arsenal’s 100 percent start to the season in the most frustrating fashion.
Arteta’s men had beaten Wolves and Aston Villa before the first setback to their bid for a first title since 2004.
“A very emotional afternoon. The referee makes a decision that changes the course of the game,” Arteta said.
“And still like this with 10 men, the team reacts unbelievably well, the stadium reacts unbelievably well and probably we should have won the game.”
