Arsene Wenger: James McArthur’s handling of Samir Nasri’s free-kick should have gotten a penalty
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger insists that the Gunners were robbed of a penalty in their drawn match against Wigan Athletic at the DW Stadium on Wednesday.
Wenger is furious at referee http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Samir-Nasri-c32360 was handled by James McArthur, who was inside the penalty box. Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas was penalized for the same
offence back in November against Tottenham Hotspur.
Wenger also believes that the penalty kick awarded to Wigan after http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Charles-c8808 N’Zogbia fell over Laurent Koscielny’s leg was unfair.
"I think their penalty was definitely not a penalty and we had a 100% penalty," Wenger told Arsenal TV. "I cannot see a difference with the penalty we got against Tottenham and the one we didn't get against Wigan. What's even more
disappointing is the referee was only five yards away."
After the early penalty for Koscielny’s foul, which http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Andrei-Arshavin-c5771 scored the first goal with a spectacular
overhead kick, and a few minutes later http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Nicklas-Bendtner-c27726 scored from inside the box. But Arsenal’s first-half lead of one goal was cancelled by Sebastien Squillaci's own goal in the final minutes of the match.
But Wenger is not blaming the drawn match entirely on the referee’s decisions; he has also expressed dismay with his side’s defensive performance and failure to communicate.
"There was no need to concede the corner that led to the own goal against Wigan," said Wenger. "We have to make a bigger effort to communicate - there was no need to concede the corner if someone talks before. That's something
we need to rectify. Nobody is taking charge on the organisation side, there is no voice when the focus drops a little bit."
Arsenal will play its next match against Birmingham City at St. Andrew’s Stadium on Saturday.
"We need to recover quickly and focus quickly again," said Wenger. "It's down to us. The players are very frustrated after the Wigan game but they can be strong in their belief and think 'that will not happen again'."
Arsenal are currently placed third in the Premier League table, with 36 points to their credit out of 19 league games.
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