Arsenal lost 1-0 to Stoke in their second game of the Premier League campaign but they were the victims of a poor penalty decision in the first-half.
The Gunners were not good enough on the day, but one moment that left fans outraged was when referee Andre Marriner decided not to award a penalty for a blatant foul on Hector Bellerín.
Mame Biram Diouf dived in on Hector in the box and got none of the ball, as can be seen below:
At 0-0 against Stoke away. Stonewall penalty the referee does not want to see. Potentially 1 to 3 points lost there. pic.twitter.com/eVQO9cDPvc
— Spanish Gooner (@elspanishgooner) August 19, 2017
However, Marriner awarded nothing but a corner.
Graham Poll confirmed that a penalty should have been given, during TV coverage on BT Sport, but said that he could understand that it was difficult for the referee to see.
Arsenal fans were having none of it though, pointing out on social media that the official’s view of the incident was completely unobstructed:
Prove that Andre Marriner sees the penalty but does not want to give it to Arsenal. Andre Marriner 1-0 Arsenal. pic.twitter.com/z87uJFrVq2
— Spanish Gooner (@elspanishgooner) August 19, 2017
The decision ended up being pivotal as the Gunners lost by just one goal, scored after the penalty appeals were ignored.
A penalty, which likely would have been converted by spot-kick specialist and new signing Alexandre Lacazette, could’ve changed the whole game.
Instead, Stoke were a team with a lead to hold onto, and managed this successfully.
Arsenal will now likely have to head to Anfield already behind most of their big six rivals.