Mikel Arteta refused to blame Anthony Taylor for ordering Arsenal’s wall to move further back after Bruno Fernandes’ stunning free-kick.

Video analysis showed Taylor had allowed Arsenal’s wall to move 11.2 yards back – beyond the legal limit of 10 yards – before Bruno curled a superb curling effort over the wall and into the near post just before half-time. Speaking on the Gary Neville Podcast,

Gary Neville said: “At the end of the day it was the referee who pushed the wall back too far. That was the mistake. But normally if you feel you’ve moved too far back you should come back up yourself. But they didn’t and Bruno used his ability to curl the ball over the wall.

” Despite Bruno’s technical prowess, pundits, including Neville, wondered whether the Portuguese would have scored if Arsenal’s wall had been any closer. Despite Arsenal’s mistake, Arteta chose not to be critical and praised Bruno’s intelligence. 

“He’s intelligent and he takes his chances well. That’s football. He is smarter than the referee and it’s OK because the referee allowed it to be,” Arteta told เล่น UFABET ผ่านมือถือ สะดวกทุกที่ ทุกเวลา Sports. Declan Rice, Arsenal’s equaliser, admitted the wall was not good enough when the goal was conceded. 

“It felt like some people jumped, some people didn’t but I haven’t seen the replays, it felt like the ball went low over our heads, which we should have blocked better,” Rice told Sky Sports. “The wall felt further back than it normally would. Even our free-kick, when (Martin) Odegaard took it, it looked further back than it normally would.

The referee is the one who makes that decision.” In the second half, as Arsenal were going to take a free-kick, Martin Odegaard faced a similar situation when referee Taylor appeared to have given United’s wall more than 10 yards back. 

Noussair Mazrawi tried to question Taylor about the wall being too far back. In the end, United’s wall did a good job as Odegaard’s shot hit the wall and bounced off safely. Despite the problems occurring between both teams, United head coach Ruben Amorim admits it is simply part of the game. “It’s clear that both free kicks were more than 10 yards away, but if it’s our team’s we don’t say anything, but if it’s the opponent’s we try to ask for it because it affects the game,” Amorim said. “In the end it’s fair, once for us, once for them. Luckily we have Bruno and he did it.”