Bukayo Saka: 'VAR always seems to go against Arsenal'

Bukayo Saka criticized VAR following Arsenal's rejection of a disputed penalty in the first half of their Premier League game versus Newcastle United.

Early in the first half, Arsenal had a major chance to take the lead when Viktor Gyokeres fell inside the box after a collision with goalkeeper Nick Pope. Referee Jarred Gillett initially pointed to the penalty spot, but after consulting VAR, he overturned the decision and canceled the penalty. This incident caused anger among Arsenal players and coaching staff.

After the match, Bukayo Saka, who had just returned to the starting lineup following injury, expressed his frustration: “In my view, VAR was designed to correct clear and obvious errors. If the referee takes too long to change a decision, then it clearly isn’t a clear error. Situations like this always seem to go against us. But today, Arsenal deserved the win and we are very happy.”

Slow-motion replays showed Pope barely touching the ball before the contact that caused Gyokeres to fall, but controversy arose over whether the Swedish striker’s scoring chance was impeded. VAR decided there was no penalty, thus taking away Arsenal’s opportunity to take the lead. Shortly afterward, Newcastle capitalized and scored first through Nick Woltemade.

However, Arsenal’s resilience was evident. Under coach Mikel Arteta, the team kept pressing, made several tactical substitutions, and eventually staged a successful comeback. Gabriel became the hero with a decisive header in stoppage time, securing a valuable 3 points for the Gunners.

This victory propelled Arsenal to 2nd place in the Premier League standings, just 2 points behind Liverpool after the Reds unexpectedly lost to Crystal Palace. This marks a crucial turning point in this season’s title race, especially as Arsenal prepares for a challenging run of London derbies against West Ham, Fulham, and Crystal Palace, along with Champions League fixtures against Olympiacos and Atletico Madrid.

Nonetheless, the VAR controversy will remain a hot topic. Beyond this match, there were other contentious moments last weekend, such as Nathan Collins avoiding a red card in Brentford’s game against Manchester United.

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