January 5th 2025.
In the recent match between Manchester United and Liverpool, forward Rasmus Hojlund caused quite a stir among Arsenal fans on social media. This was after referee Michael Oliver chose not to book Hojlund for kicking the ball away during the game.
The incident took place in the 36th minute of an exciting first half at Anfield. United's midfielder Manuel Ugarte was called out for a foul on Luis Dias, and Hojlund was seen poking the ball away from Virgil van Dijk, who was preparing for a quick free-kick. However, the referee did not take any action against Hojlund, which may have been a lucky break for the young Danish striker.
Interestingly, the only player to receive a yellow card during the first half was United's full-back Diogo Dalot, who was booked in the 23rd minute. This left many Arsenal supporters reminiscing about a similar incident earlier in the season when the same referee showed Brighton's Trossard a second yellow card for a similar action during their game against Manchester City.
In that game, Trossard had received his first booking for pulling Savinho's shirt, and the second yellow for firing the ball away after an Arsenal foul in the dying moments of the first half. This resulted in City rescuing a point thanks to John Stones' late heroics, and Arsenal's manager Mikel Arteta was not happy about it.
In a post-match interview, Arteta expressed his frustration with the referee's decision, stating that it's not his job to judge the events of the game. His job is to survive in such a difficult environment and try to get things done to secure a win for his team. He also mentioned that Trossard's sending off made it an impossible task for Arsenal to play against a strong Manchester City side.
According to Arteta, anyone who has played sports can see that the incident was less than a second, making it a harsh decision by the referee. He also pointed out that defending against 11 players is hard enough, but with six players in the box, it becomes impossible. This left Arsenal with a difficult task ahead of them in the second half.
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