Footage has resurfaced of Arsenal apparently deliberately wasting time during a crucial match with Liverpool at Anfield last year, after the Gunners were accused of using “dark arts” in their draw with Manchester City on Sunday.
The top-of-the-table clash at the Etihad threatened to boil over on multiple occasions, with City furious at Arsenal for slowing down play as they attempted to hold on to their 2-1 lead before John Stones rescued a point for the hosts in stoppage time.
After Leandro Trossard received a second yellow card for kicking the ball on the stroke of half-time, several Arsenal players sat on the pitch for treatment in the second half, including goalkeeper David Raya after being instructed to do so by teenage substitute Myles Lewis-Skelly, who was subsequently booked.
Bernardo Silva and Manuel Akanji criticised Arsenal’s tactics, but it appears Mikel Arteta’s men have already used this strategy before when they travelled to Anfield in April 2023.
Arsenal took the lead through Gabriel Martinelli but Liverpool came close to equalising when Andy Robertson headed just wide. As the ball skimmed the post, goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale sat down in his six-yard box after looking towards the bench and called for the physio, while Arteta gestured for his players to come over to him for encouragement.
Aaron Ramsdale sat in his six-yard box after apparently being ordered to lie down by the Arsenal bench in last year’s clash with Liverpool.
He stayed on the ground for almost a minute while Mikel Arteta gave a motivational talk to the rest of the team.
Arteta got his message across and Arsenal doubled their lead shortly after.
Just over 10 minutes later, Gabriel went down immediately after another great chance for Liverpool.
This time, the Arsenal physiotherapist was seen running onto the pitch before being waved onto the field by the referee.
Time-wasting tactics have resurfaced after Arsenal were accused of using “dark arts” against Manchester City on Sunday.
The entire team, minus Ramsdale, spoke to Arteta for almost a minute before the England goalkeeper stood up and play continued.
Just over 10 minutes later, with Arsenal now 2-0 up thanks to a Gabriel Jesus header, Mo Salah raced towards goal but his shot flew over Ramsdale’s near post.
It was another great relief for the visitors, and when the ball bounced off the advertising board, an Arsenal player kicked the ball towards the touchline.
This time, Gabriel sat on the ground, and before the referee blew his whistle for him to receive treatment, Arsenal’s physiotherapist ran onto the pitch.
Three Arsenal players made their way onto the pitch to receive further instructions from Arteta, with the restart being delayed by around 90 seconds on this occasion.
Liverpool staged a stunning comeback, with goals from Salah and Roberto Firmino earning a 2-2 draw and dashing Arsenal’s title hopes.
Arteta’s side fell out of favour in the final weeks of the campaign after that draw, as they finished five points behind champions City.
But they frustrated Liverpool with some of their tactics at Anfield and also irritated City this weekend.
Arsenal currently lead the time-wasting charts in the Premier League this season, with the north London club taking an average of 31.8 seconds to restart play from corners, goal-kicks, free-kicks, penalties, throw-ins and kick-offs.
Arsenal were also criticised for their defensive tactics once they were reduced to 10 men on Sunday.
David Raya went down in the second half after being ordered to do so by Myles Lewis-Skelly.
Gabriel Martinelli was another player who had to receive treatment as Arsenal tried to hold on to a famous win.
They registered just 12.5 percent possession in the second half, while Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber did not complete a single successful pass in the entire game.
But Arteta insists it would have been “very foolish” not to adopt an ultra-defensive stance in the game, and refused to take blame for Trossard being sent off for kicking the ball, just weeks after Declan Rice was shown red for the same offence.
Asked if he would tell his players to stop kicking the ball in future, Arteta sarcastically replied: “Just leave the ball, don’t touch it. We play without the ball.”
He then defended his tactics, pointing out that he had learned from playing with 10 men at the Etihad before, having watched his side lose 5-0 when Granit Xhaka was sent off in 2021.
“Well, we had to play the game we had to play,” Arteta said.
Mikel Arteta defended his tactics against City and refused to take the blame for Leandro Trossard’s dismissal
Trossard was sent off for kicking the ball away on the stroke of half-time.
‘The first 10 or 15 minutes we couldn’t handle the eleven against eleven. After that we improved a lot. They put us in a very different context and we did what every team does.
‘They played 30 seconds with 10 men. Look what they did for 30 seconds. It’s normal what they did. We had to do it in a different way.
“We have learned from the past. Unfortunately, we have been in the same situation several times. We were in the same situation with Granit (Xhaka) after 38 minutes and we lost 5-0. It is better that we learn. If not, it would be foolish, very foolish.”