“This ref is an utter disgrace”, “Make it make sense” - Arsenal fans furious with ‘worst decision’ in football during 1-1 draw with Brighton

Arsenal fans have slammed Declan Rice's red card in their side's 1-1 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion today (August 31). The English midfielder was sent off for the first time in his career for two bookable offenses.

The Gunners settled on a point after dealing with a one-man disadvantage for most of the second half. Referee Chris Kavanagh gave Rice his marching orders in the 49th minute as controversy reigned at the Emirates.

Rice got a slight flick on the ball when Brighton defender Joel Veltman went to take a quick free-kick. The Dutchman reacted by kicking out at the England international, but Kavanagh adjudged the midfielder to have been delaying play.

Fans were furious at the Emirates when Kavanagh first showed Rice a yellow then a red card. He protested the decision but headed down the tunnel, much to the bemusement of manager Mikel Arteta.

Rice's first yellow card came in the 42nd minute for a foul on Veltman that was booking worthy. His second was much more contentious and Arsenal fans think it's one of the worst decisions in Premier League history.

The Gunners had taken the lead through Kai Havertz's chip in the 38th minute courtesy of poor defending from Brighton's Lewis Dunk. Rice's red card impacted proceedings, and the visitors equalized 10 minutes later.

Joao Pedro got on the scoresheet in the 58th minute with a close-range finish. The Seagulls had chances to come away from north London with all three points but Arsenal defended well and even countered at times.

Fans have reacted angrily to Rice's red card, and one fan explained why the decision was wrong:

"The ball is literally rolling, Veltman cannot take a freekick with the ball rolling, so how has Rice been booked for touching the moving ball? Referee is a joke."

Another fan was perplexed:

"So Pedro can boot the ball away and not get penalised, but Rice just nudges it, gets booted deliberately and gets sent off in the process. Make it make sense."

Other fans vented their frustrations with Kavanagh's decision on X (formerly Twitter). One fan felt it was soft:

"Sorry…That might be the softest 2nd yellow I’ve ever seen. Veltman and Rice tangle, but if anything Veltman is the aggressor… Freekick Brighton… Rice touches the ball away… Veltman boots Rice. And it’s a 2nd yellow for Rice?!"

Another fan pointed out a lack of consistency:

"Joao Pedro kicks the ball away the first half and no yellow. Rice gets sent off for the same offense after being on the receiving end of violent conduct."

Another fan also pointed this out:

"'He kicked the ball away' Joao Pedro booted the ball away with vim in the first half and did he receive a yellow? Absolutely not. Veltman should be sent off for kicking Rice deliberately, this ref is an utter disgrace."

A non-Gunners fan called it one of the worst decisions in football:

"Not an Arsenal fan. Not a Brighton fan. The red card for Declan Rice has to be one of the worst decisions I've ever seen in football. Total joke. Never a 1st yellow let alone a 2nd and a red."

One fan was bemused by UK commentators' reaction:

"TNT Sports commentators really trying to make out that Declan Rice tackle could’ve been a red card is laughable. Glad McCoist is there to speak some sense."

One fan wrote:

"Mosquera did Havertz and Jesus dirty against Wolves, no card but let’s give Rice a second yellow card because he touched the ball."

One fan doubted such a decision would be made again:

"The only thing with the Declan rice red card is will the referees keep that consistency if it happens again this weekend? Probably not and that's where the problem is."

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"Inconsistency" - Mikel Arteta slams Declan Rice's sending-off after Arsenal's 1-1 draw with Brighton

Mikel Arteta ripped into the decision and argued both Arsenal and Brighton should have finished the game with 10 men. He made clear the lack of consistency with such decisions when speaking to TNT Sports:

"No explanation like always... If that happens (punishment for delays) in a consistent way in a game that's fine but it didn't happen. In the first half there were a number of occasions where they kicked the ball away and nothing happened. So it's inconsistency and it's in an area where it's not critical and on top of that if you make that call you have to give a red."

Arteta then suggested Veltman should have been sent off for his reaction to Rice. He kicked the Arsenal midfielder to the floor but wasn't even booked:

"We had to play with 10 and they had to play with 10 because it's a red card (for) Veltman."

Arteta will be without Rice for Arsenal's north London derby visit to Tottenham Hotspur on September 15. His dismissal led to the Gunners dropping points for the first time this season.