Mikel Arteta has been branded a “mini-me” by Richard Keys following his seething post-match interview after the north London derby.
Arteta refused to give his opinion of the referee’s performance after Cedric Soares conceded a contentious penalty and Rob Holding was sent off in Arsenal ’s 3-0 defeat by Tottenham . Cedric was adjudged to have pushed Son Heung-min in the box before Holding picked up two yellow cards in quick succession for fouls on the same player in the first half, helping Spurs pick up a comfortable win to close the gap to fourth place in the Premier League.
Paul Tierney did not hesitate in sending off the Arsenal centre-back, whose dismissal prompted Arteta to move Takehiro Tomiyasu into the middle of defence and Granit Xhaka to left-back. Arteta had centre-back Ben White on the substitutes’ bench but chose not to use him – a decision which was criticised after Harry Kane scored his second goal with a diving header from a corner four minutes after Holding’s red card.
