John Hartson has slammed David Ospina for his role in Jhon Cordoba’s goal for Cologne.
The visitors took a surprise lead in Thursday night’s game after Colombian striker Jhon Cordoba scored a stunning strike from 45-yards.
Ospina played a large part in the goal. He charged off his line to clear the ball, only to make poor contact for his clearance, giving it straight to a Cologne player.
Seconds later, he was left stranded as the shot flew over his head into the top corner.
John Hartson, who was co-commentator for the night on BT Sport, criticised the Colombian keeper for his mistake.
“It’s not a good clearance from Ospina,” Hartson said, as reported by The Daily Star.
“It’s poor, he’s got to kick that into the opponent’s half.
“But take nothing away from Cordoba’s finish. Brilliant vision, what a goal.
“He (Ospina) never really put his foot through the ball.
“That should be going deep into Cologne’s half.
“Take nothing away from the finish, it was brilliant from the centre-forward.”
Ospina made the correct decision to come off his line, as the Arsenal were backline were caught out by a through pass.
Of course, having made that decision, he had to ensure that his clearance either found an Arsenal player or one of the many red shirts sitting in the crowd.
His inability to do so gave Cordoba the opportunity to score an outstanding goal.
Fortunately, Arsenal managed to turn the game around and come away with a 3-1 victory.