David Raya saved Enzo Le Fee’s spot-kick before Arsenal went on to win, but Arteta remained incensed by a decision he said could have changed far more than the match.
Mikel Arteta was furious despite Arsenal’s 2-0 win at Sunderland, after the officials awarded the home side a second-half penalty that he was adamant should never have been given.
The decision came shortly after half-time, with referee John Brooks penalising Ezri Konsa following a tussle with Sunderland defender Dan Ballard inside the Arsenal area, when it looked clear that Ballard had dragged Konsa to the ground.
With the game still goalless, Sunderland were handed the chance to take the lead, but David Raya saved Enzo Le Fée’s penalty to keep Arsenal level.
The Gunners went on to win through a superb goal from Bruno Guimaraes and a stoppage-time penalty from Bukayo Saka, but the result did nothing to soften Arteta’s view of the earlier decision.
“I’m so upset, it’s unacceptable at this level,” Arteta said. “It can change a season, a championship.”
Arteta believed Ballard had executed what he described as a “judo roll” during the incident and was equally frustrated that VAR, with Stuart Atwell in charge, did not intervene.
“I watched it 10 times. It’s a judo roll. It just cannot happen. It’s a huge win but it could’ve been something very different,” Arteta said. “They could’ve changed the game.”
For Arteta, Raya’s save did not make the decision any less serious. Had Sunderland scored, Arsenal would have fallen behind at a crucial stage of the match and the complexion of the contest could have changed completely.
“I loved the save from David [Raya] the way the team reacted, the way we go again and we go against everything, but this should never happen, it’s not fair, and I am sad, very sad, in that sense,” Arteta added.
Brooks was assisted by James Mainwaring and Wade Smith, with Elliott Bell acting as fourth official. Atwell was on VAR duty, assisted by Edward Smith.
The Sunderland manager said after the match that he had not seen the incident, despite running to his iPad after every incident. That says it all, really.
Arsenal ultimately took all three points, but Arteta’s anger centred on the wider implications of a decision that was plainly wrong. After just two games Arsenal have already seen two massive incorrect penalty decisions go against them, which does not bode well for the rest of the season.
Bruno Guimarães' first Premier League goal for Arsenal is an absolute STUNNER from outside the box! 🔥
— NBC Sports Soccer (@nbcsportsoccer.bsky.social) 12 September 2026 at 22:02
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It’s about time Arsenal started calling this sort of stuff out and Arteta continued in his post-match press conference.
“Look, the first question we have to discuss is that this is not acceptable at this level,” he said.
“It was a beautiful game of football, with two teams and an atmosphere in the stadium that was unbelievable, with Sunderland they are so organised; they are so good in so many phases, they have great players, they created a lot of issues we had to cope with.
“We had to cope with all of that, it was a lot in a really difficult week after Chelsea and Napoli, and on top of that we have to go through what we’ve done today that in my opinion is not acceptable. I watched it 20 times, and I cannot find a way to understand how they even think to give a penalty in that situation, or the way the VAR has to intervene.
“So I don’t know what to think, but I’m sad that we have to discuss in such a beautiful game something at this level that has the gravity of that, because that changes the course of the season and can cost you the championship.
“At this level, with all the work that we put in, this cannot happen. I cannot find an explanation – that’s why I’m going to try and find an explanation now. I want to be talking about how good we were, how good Sunderland were, and the level of the league and how beautiful this is – we should not be talking about that. I cannot find an explanation – that’s why I’m going to try and find an explanation now. “
Despite all this, Arsenal are now five points better off than they were after the corresponding fixtures last season, having turned a draw into a win at the Stadium of Light and a defeat into a win at Villa Park.
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