Merson Questions Arteta’s Tunnel Reaction to 16-Year-Old Max Dowman’s Red Card

• Former Arsenal midfielder Paul Merson said Mikel Arteta should have put an arm around 16-year-old Max Dowman after his red card at Fleetwood, per Sky Sports.
• Asked what he said in the tunnel, Arteta said it was “something that we discussed” before the game.
• Dowman is suspended, and with Saka, Tzolis and Madueke also out injured, Arsenal’s wing options look slim for Liverpool on Sunday.

Would Arteta Say the Same to Viktor Gyokeres?

Paul Merson did not like what he saw from Mikel Arteta on the way down the tunnel at Fleetwood Town. Max Dowman, 16, had just been sent off in Arsenal’s Carabao Cup tie, and Merson, a former Arsenal midfielder, said the manager’s reaction would have been different with a senior player. “If that’s [Viktor] Gyokeres, who’s an experienced international, he [Arteta] isn’t doing that”, Merson said, before asking: “but he does that to a 16-year-old kid?” Merson said what he would have done instead. “If it was me, I’d have put my arm around him. It’s still 1-1, they’re still in the game.”

The red card and the tunnel

Dowman was sent off for violent conduct after a clash with Fleetwood defender Harrison Neal. The two had challenged for a couple of 50-50s before a brawl broke out. Dowman reacted to a heavy challenge from Neal and did not fully kick out, but he made a movement with his leg in Neal’s direction that gave referee Michael Salisbury a decision to make. The score was 1-1. Fleetwood, a League Two side, went on to knock Arsenal out on penalties.

Arteta gave the teenager a scathing look as he left the pitch and appeared to say something to him as he walked past on the way to the tunnel. Afterwards, reporters asked him what he had said. He gave a short answer and refused to add any detail when pressed: it was “something that we discussed” before the game.

Co-commentator Andy Hinchcliffe called the red card harsh on Dowman. Arteta replied: “I haven’t seen it with the camera. You can’t really see what happens. The decision was made by the referee and that’s it.” Asked whether Dowman has to learn from the incident, Arteta said the squad had been “very clear” in its preparation on “the things that emotionally we have to dominate.”

Pundits weigh in

Merson went further on the way Arteta handled the moment. “We all say things in life we wish we hadn’t and if he [Arteta] could have that back, he’d do it differently”, he said.

Fellow pundit Jobi McAnuff agreed. “I can’t understand the reaction”, he said. McAnuff accepted that Arteta probably saw the sending-off as “petulant, naive”, put the red card down to Dowman’s frustration, and stressed the player’s age: “we have to remember he’s 16”. Then he turned to the manager. “Dowman is potentially the future of Arsenal. Arteta didn’t get that quite right.”

Leon Osman, the former Everton midfielder, took the other side on the sending off. He believes a lack of experience played a part in the red card and that Dowman “can’t have any complaints.” Osman did not excuse the reaction on the pitch either: “It was a poor reaction from him and you hope he learns and he learns quickly.”

Arteta defended his players on effort. “A really sad day for us. I cannot fault at all the attitude of the players”, he said. “It wasn’t to do with attitude otherwise I would be here fuming. I’m sad, we’re all sad.”

A second red card in a month

Dowman had made only his second start of the season at Fleetwood. He scored twice in the previous round of the Carabao Cup against Ipswich, and Arteta rewarded him with another start. The red card is the first of his senior career. It is also his second this month, after he was sent off while playing for England Under-19s in the last international break. Arteta has previously said that Dowman will have to get used to tough treatment from defenders.

What comes next

Arteta has not said more about his words to Dowman beyond the line that it had been discussed before the game. Dowman is now suspended. Bukayo Saka is out for around six weeks, Christos Tzolis is working to return and Noni Madueke is unavailable with an injury, so Arteta’s choices in the wide areas for the match with Liverpool on Sunday look slim.

WRITTEN BY

George Howson

George Howson is a Futbol Chronicle contributor and accredited journalist with over 20 years of experience following international football. A member of the AIPS International Sports Press Association, George has covered matches at stadiums around the world, bringing deep knowledge and first-hand insight to every match report and analysis he writes.

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