Farke slams 'inconsistent' officiating after Arsenal beat Leeds

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Daniel Farke did not hold back after watching his Leeds United side suffer their first defeat of the season at the Emirates Stadium, accusing match officials of 'inconsistent' decision-making during Arsenal's comeback win.

Arsenal trailed inside the opening ten minutes of the second half after James Justin fired Leeds into a deserved lead. Riccardo Calafiori levelled before substitute Bruno Guimaraes struck a fine low finish to complete a 2-1 turnaround for Mikel Arteta's side.

But the post-match talking point centred on refereeing decisions, with Farke pointing to bookings shown to Ao Tanaka and Ethan Ampadu in the second half. The Leeds boss, who was himself booked during the match, detailed a conversation he had with the fourth official earlier in the game.

Farke's fourth official exchange

Speaking after the match, Farke explained he had raised concerns in the first half over what he felt were tactical fouls on Dominic Calvert-Lewin that went unpunished. He said the fourth official told him such incidents, occurring 20-30 yards into Leeds' own half, were 'not so dangerous' enough to warrant a card.

'I said, OK, listen, no problem. I accept this. I don't ask for yellow cards, but please don't do the opposite when it happens on the other side just because the whole stadium is asking for it,' Farke said, recalling the exchange.

He continued: 'What happens? Ao Tanaka, 30 yards in their half - foul, yellow card because the whole stadium is on it. Ethan Ampadu, 30 yards in their half - yellow card because the whole stadium is on it.'

Farke said he was left frustrated when the fourth official, Oliver Langford, declined to explain the decisions, leading to Farke leaving his technical area to seek clarification — an action that resulted in his own booking.

'No consistency in these decisions'

'All three yellow cards were not deserved or not with consistency,' Farke added. 'But it's also like with Ao Tanaka, I have to take him off in the second half because he was there with another foul. We had to be careful. Ethan Ampadu has to be careful in each duel and these little details are also sometimes decisive. I think there was no consistency in these decisions.'

Despite his frustration with the officiating, Farke was complimentary of the mentality Arteta has instilled at Arsenal, suggesting it played a role in the comeback. 'It is down to the mentality that Mikel has created here that even on a tough day they find a way,' he said. 'They found the equaliser, and, as the champions, they gained momentum, and they used that momentum to take the lead.'

The result keeps Arsenal's unbeaten home record intact this season, while Leeds will look to respond when they return to action, having picked up their first defeat of the campaign. As reported by football.london, Farke insisted his players would take the positives from an otherwise 'tough' afternoon.