M. Arteta unleashed anger on the referee and VAR

2026-04-30 10:51 © AFP

Arsenal of London drew 1:1 in the away match on Wednesday, starting the UEFA Champions League semifinal series with Atlético Madrid.

Both teams scored their goals via penalties, but in the 78th minute, another penalty was awarded against Atlético, which the referee rescinded after a VAR review.

Arsenal's coach Mikel Arteta was particularly furious about this episode after the match.

"I am very angry and I cannot understand how the referee could rescind the penalty after a foul on Eze. In that episode, the referee did not make an obvious mistake. This decision changed the course of the match. At this level, such things cannot happen.

There was a violation of the rules, so I cannot understand it. It is clear that there was contact between the players, so the referee cannot rescind the penalty, especially when it required watching the replay 13 times.

We worked hard to be here, and such a decision essentially changes the course of the series. Such things cannot be tolerated," M. Arteta did not hide his anger.