06 November 2023 , 19:28
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Gary Neville has labelled Arsenal's statement demanding the PGMOL address the standard of officiating in the Premier League "dangerous" after Newcastle's controversial win over the Gunners.
The former Manchester United captain has also reminded Arsenal that "all clubs signed up to a new rule charter at the start of the season" when it was announced that referees would be cracking down on time-wasting and dissent and being stricter when policing the bench and technical areas.
Mikel Arteta was incensed following Arsenal's defeat by Newcastle, in which Anthony Gordon scored the only goal of the game with the ball appearing to leave the pitch in the build-up to the effort.
The Spaniard lost his cool in his post-match press conference, calling the decision to award the goal "disgraceful" and "embarrassing", with Arsenal later releasing a statement to say they support the manager's outburst.
Neville gave his thoughts on the situation on Sky Sports, ahead of Tottenham's clash with Chelsea, comparing the statement to one released by Liverpool following their 2-1 defeat against Spurs.
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"I thought the statement was really poor. I did the other week, I thought Liverpool had a shocking one go against them a few weeks ago here and we knew it was wrong at the time and they had a lot to feel hard done [to] by.
"But I thought the day after when Liverpool wrote their statement, when they mentioned sporting integrity and said they were looking at all options, and then the suggestion of a replay - I thought that, to be fair, was quite dangerous.
"I think the Arsenal statement is quite dangerous. All clubs signed up to a new rule charter at the start of the season. I'm not saying referees shouldn't be put under pressure or that Mikel Arteta or other managers shouldn't feel aggrieved at the end of matches. What I am saying is that the clubs themselves should definitely behave better in these circumstances."
Gary Neville has called the statement "dangerous" (Getty Images)"And I'm looking at the Premier League now really, and the leadership of the Premier League, because the reality of it is that they've got to start to protect referees. At the very beginning, I was excited by the new transparency, the apologies to managers and the fact that referees were communicating with clubs.
"But in return what they're getting is significantly and seriously undermined by their own clubs and the Premier League have to get this in order - and the other clubs have to get the clubs in order who are writing these letters. Because, I think this is uncharted territory, these letters being written.
"To me, it feels like Mikel Arteta has gone off on one on the Saturday, which is fine, he's emotional, and then he's gone to the board on the Sunday and said 'You need to back me' and they've fallen for it. Arsenal is an institution, as a football club, a massive great, wonderful football club, with a huge history, and they should behave better than that.
"And they'll feel disappointed in a few years, the directors of the football club and whoever sanctioned that statement, and I do think the Premier League have to come down on the club. I do think they do really now have to say to the club, 'Come on, we expect better than this.'"
Mikel Arteta was far from impressed (MI News/NurPhoto/REX/Shutterstock)Arteta was angry with Newcastle's only goal against Arsenal for a number of reasons but refused to discuss specifics when speaking to the press. He said: "Because it's not a goal, for many reasons it's not a goal, for more than one reason at least it's not a goal.
"And there's too much at stake here, we put in so much effort, and it's so difficult to compete at this level. And it's an absolute disgrace. Again, I feel embarrassed."
The Gunners' statement read: "Arsenal Football Club wholeheartedly supports Mikel Arteta's post-match comments after yet more unacceptable refereeing and VAR errors on Saturday evening. We'd also like to acknowledge the huge effort and performance from our players and travelling supporters at St James' Park.
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"The Premier League is the best league in the world with the best players, coaches and supporters, all of whom deserve better. PGMOL urgently needs to address the standard of officiating and focus on action which moves us all on from retrospective analysis, attempted explanations and apologies.
"We support the ongoing efforts of Chief Refereeing Officer, Howard Webb and would welcome working together to achieve the world-class officiating standards our league demands."