Mistaken identity duo let off by FA
Full-back Gibbs was shown a red card in a case of mistaken identity during the first half of Saturday’s 6-0 thrashing at Chelsea by referee Andre Marriner, instead of Oxlade-Chamberlain — who had committed the handball in the six-yard box and admitted his guilt at the time, but was waved away.
The FA confirmed last night the sanction against Gibbs had been removed, and instead transferred to Oxlade-Chamberlain. However, Arsenal then subsequently moved to have that offence downgraded on appeal, claiming the England midfielder had not technically prevented a clear goalscoring opportunity as the shot from Chelsea’s Eden Hazard was going just wide.
That claim was also upheld, meaning both Gibbs and Oxlade-Chamberlain will be able to face Swansea.
A statement from the FA read: “An Independent Regulatory Commission today heard two claims from Arsenal, one of mistaken identity and the other of wrongful dismissal, both in relation to Saturday’s game against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
“The commission ruled that the dismissal of Kieran Gibbs was a case of mistaken identity and transferred this to his team-mate Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
“Subsequent to deciding this matter, the commission then considered Arsenal’s claim for wrongful dismissal in relation to Oxlade-Chamberlain. This claim was upheld, meaning Oxlade-Chamberlain will not serve any suspension with the standard punishment withdrawn with immediate effect.”
The heavy defeat on Saturday lunchtime ruined manager Arsene Wenger’s 1,000th match in charge and severely dented his side’s Premier League title ambitions, with the Gunners in fourth place, albeit still with a match in hand on the leaders.
And Wenger accepts his side cannot afford to drop their standards again when they look to respond Swansea tonight.
Wenger, who cancelled yesterday morning’s scheduled pre-match press conference, knows if his men are to stand any chance of salvaging what has largely been a promising campaign, then they must not lose focus again.
Speaking to the in-house Arsenal Media channel, Wenger said: “The Premier League is difficult and as soon as you drop your standards a little bit you are of course in danger.
“The fight at the top is very, very hard and that’s why every game has its own difficulties that you have to deal with.”
Some two days on from the Stamford Bridge thrashing, Wenger, who will be without the injured Laurent Koscielny at Emirates Stadium tonight, remains baffled as to why his side once again failed to turn up in a big game.
Wenger’s squad appeared to have learned no lessons from their 6-3 defeat at Manchester City earlier this season and the subsequent 5-1 mauling at Liverpool — where they trailed 4-0 inside 20 minutes — as Arsenal were torn apart by Jose Mourinho’s rampant Blues during a blistering opening spell. “We are intelligent enough and care enough about the club to, of course, be disappointed with our performance,” Wenger said.
“I believe Man City was different, [but] Liverpool, yes. The common thing was that it was a 12.45 game and twice we were caught at the start of the game.
“We think about that and at the moment there is no rational explanation other than the quality of our opponents and that we were caught at the start of the game. Why? We don’t really know.”
Saturday’s humiliation has cast a shadow over the club, with midfielder Mikel Arteta issuing a public apology on behalf of the players for the “unacceptable” and “embarrassing” defeat. He said: “We paid for our own mistakes. We have to take it on the chin because it is unacceptable to lose another big game like this.
“I don’t know what else to say apart from sorry to everyone at the club, the fans, and we promise that we will try hard to put that right. It is embarrassing to be on a football pitch in that situation.”
For his part, Swansea coach Garry Monk is braced for a backlash tonight.
“We are expecting a reaction from them,” Monk said.
“That’s the message to my boys. We will try to go up there with the right attitude and put on the right performance to come away with something.”
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