Arsenal supporters have expressed their frustrations, claiming that referees and VAR are conspiring against their team following Aston Villa’s disallowed goal during their match against Bournemouth.
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The incident occurred when John McGinn believed he had given Villa an early lead, only for VAR to step in and rule that the ball had gone out of play before Ollie Watkins retrieved it.
This controversial decision has rekindled memories for Arsenal fans of a similar situation last season, where a disallowed goal at Newcastle cost them dearly.
In that match, Anthony Gordon’s effort was allowed to stand despite concerns that Joe Willock failed to keep the ball in play before assisting Joelinton’s goal.
Frustrated by the increasing number of contentious calls going against them, Arsenal fans reacted strongly on social media, with one supporter lamenting, “The entire league is against Arsenal, and they can’t even hide it at this point.”
Another added, “Same league, different rules,” highlighting their belief in a bias against their team.
Fans also called for opinions from pundits like Gary Neville, who previously argued for the legitimacy of Gordon’s goal during the Newcastle-Arsenal match.
Richard Keys joined the conversation, criticizing the VAR officials for their decision-making. He stated, “Here we go. Disallowed goal at Villa because VAR ruled the ball was out of play. I’ve seen nothing to prove it was.
Right now, it looks as though they were guessing. I’m waiting for proof – or they have to go with the on-field decision.”
Ultimately, Villa felt robbed of three points after Evanilson’s injury-time header equalized Ross Barkley’s 76th-minute opener, leaving manager Unai Emery visibly frustrated.
“We played a fantastic game,” said a disappointed Emery. “We deserved to win and dominated possession. In our process, we are progressively demanding to win clearly.
If we played the game again, the plan would be the same. We created chances in the first half and controlled the game perfectly.
“In the second half, we started even better and didn’t concede anything. After we scored, the match changed because Bournemouth was pushing into our box.
We needed to concentrate 100 percent on defense like we usually do. When you’re 1-0 up in the last minute, we didn’t control it like we needed to, and that’s something we must learn.”