Ian Wright admitted Kai Havertz He had a moment where he could have been sent off before he scored the winning goal for Arsenal against Brentford, but he's happy he wasn't.
The German He scored the decisive goal in the 86th minute, securing a 2-1 victory for the Gunners at the Emirates and placing them at the top of the Premier League table.
However, there was controversy as the former Chelsea player had already received a booking for elbowing Kristoffer Ajer, and could have easily received a second yellow card.
Havertz went down in the box near Nathan Collins, but it was clear that he dived, and he avoided a yellow card, which led Brentford boss Thomas Frank to believe he should have been punished.
‘The performance was excellent, especially when you consider Arsenal’s form, our form, our injury situation,’ Frank told Sky Sports.
‘I actually don’t think Havertz should have been on the pitch when he scored. It was a clear dive. Maybe it is difficult for the ref but the linesman should have seen it.’
In a subsequent BBC interview, he added: ‘They [the players] were very angry because they felt they were hard done by with the penalty shout with Havertz. You can see the angles, it was clearly a dive. That was a second yellow and then it is 11 v 10.’
Wright felt the same as the Dane, confused as to why the assistant referee didn’t spot the clear dive from the 24-year-old.
‘I do agree with Thomas Frank, he probably shouldn’t have been on the pitch for that but he was and I was pleased he was to be honest!’ Wright said on Match of the Day.
‘I think the assistant should probably be doing more there. The assistant should be seeing that.
‘They [VAR] can’t be giving a yellow card there but they’ve missed so much. They must have gone to the toilet at that particular time!’
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