Arteta 'very disappointed' as Dowman's red card appeal rejected
Mikel Arteta did not hide his frustration after Arsenal's appeal against Max Dowman's red card at Fleetwood Town was rejected by the FA. Speaking in his pre-match press conference before the Premier League trip to Liverpool, the Arsenal boss said he was “very disappointed, to be fair,” adding that the 16 year old's reaction to a reckless challenge was “minimal in relation to the action.”
“Especially with the reckless tackles that he received, and then his reaction is minimal in relation to the action,” Arteta said. “Disappointed that it's not been overturned after looking at the action back, to be fair.”
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Asked whether it amounted to the victim being punished, Arteta explained the club had made every effort to get the decision changed. “It is what it is. We have put every argument on the table to make a case for it. Not only the action, obviously, that it's evident, and when you look it back in slow motion, the previous action and Max's action, it's clear that obviously we have a very different opinion. And on top of that, I think you have to read the context of the player, the age, and what happened previously.”
He confirmed the severity of the incident, noting Dowman narrowly avoided a serious injury. “It could have been really bad, yeah. And we are lucky today that he hasn't had a broken foot. That's clear.”
Arteta explains heated reaction
Arteta also addressed criticism of his visibly furious reaction as Dowman was sent off, revealing he had already spoken to the teenager about managing such moments before kick off. “My reaction comes in a moment of heat and extreme frustration, because I know the consequences of that, especially for Max,” he said. “It's something that we discussed just before we went out, because it's not the first time that happened. It happened another time this month with England.”
He added that relations with Dowman are fine following a conversation the day before. “Yeah, for sure. I mean, I had a talk with him yesterday. No issues at all.”
Fitness updates ahead of Anfield
Arteta also gave several team news updates before Sunday's title clash at Liverpool. Noni Madueke's involvement remains unclear. “We don't know yet. We have a training session tomorrow, see if he can complete that full session tomorrow, and after that we'll know whether he's available or not,” Arteta said, though he stopped short of ruling the winger out entirely.
On Bukayo Saka, Arteta said further scans are needed to determine the extent of the issue and whether it threatens his involvement with England. “Probably,” he said when asked if a timeline would be known before the international break, adding “it looks like it” regarding missing England duty.
More positively, Declan Rice, Riccardo Calafiori and Christos Tzolis are all pushing for involvement. “They all trained today and they will train tomorrow. If everything is ok, they will be available,” Arteta confirmed.
Arsenal have not won at Anfield in the Premier League since 2012, a run Arteta was part of as a player. “Going there with full conviction, that's number one,” he said. “We've been very, very close in the last few years to win, but something is missed.”
Source: football.london
