Mikel Arteta felt Arsenal were denied a “clear penalty” as they were held to a goalless draw at Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Saturday.
Ola Aina appeared to handle the ball in the box after it hit his shoulder, but the VAR judged that the defender’s arm was in a natural position.
Arteta argued that Aina intended to keep the ball in play with his arm and therefore a spot kick should have been awarded.
Arteta fumes as Arsenal denied ‘clear penalty’ against Forest
“We obviously wanted to win the game, we knew the game was going to be very tough and very close as well from the way that they play. We created four big, big, big chances and a clear penalty, but we weren’t able to win the game.
“I’ve just seen the replays, I think it’s a clear intention to clear the ball inside and it’s a clear penalty so I don’t understand why it’s not been given.
“We could’ve been better, but as well, this is happening all around the league for every single team. We have to improve and be better, especially when we create four big chances, you have to put them away.
“You have to produce that moment. We’ve created certain moments, but credit to them as well because they are very well-organised and they disrupt your momentum in clever ways as well all the time. We knew that. We tried to at the end find a goal. I don’t think we conceded a single shot, again. But that’s the margins and we didn’t find a way to win it.”
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