Man City vs Arsenal: Trossard sent off controversially for kicking the ball away

Leandro Trossard was shown the red card for kicking the ball away in the Premier League match between Arsenal and Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester on Sunday.

Leandro Trossard of Arsenal battles for possession with Ruben Dias of Manchester City during the Premier League match at the Etihad Stadium. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

Leandro Trossard was shown the red card for kicking the ball away in the Premier League match between Arsenal and Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester on Sunday.

Just before half-time, Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva was fouled in the midfield, after which Trossard kicked the ball away, which referee Michael Oliver found objectionable.

The Belgian, who was already on a yellow card, was shown a second yellow, forcing him to leave the field afterwards.

The decision left all his Arsenal team visibly shocked while manager Mikel Arteta was seen covering his head with his jumper in disbelief.

Arsenal was leading 2-1 in the contest, with two comeback goals off Riccardo Calafiori and Gabriel Magalhaes in the first half but John Stones’ late equaliser held the 10-man Gunners to a draw.

The London-based club has also been infuriated with red card decisions earlier this season, with Declan Rice given marching orders against Brighton and Hove Albion for delaying restart, which had left Arteta enraged.

“I was amazed. Amazed, amazed, amazed because of how inconsistent decisions can be,” Arteta had said in his post-match press conference.

“In the first half, there are two incidents and nothing happens. Then, in a non-critical area, the ball hits Declan (on the back of his leg), he turns around, he doesn’t see the player coming and he touches the ball.

“By law, he [the referee] can make that call, but then by law he needs to make the next call, which is red card so we play 10 vs 10. This is what amazed me. At this level it’s amazing,” he added.