According to journalist Henry Winter and British outlet The Mirror, Arsenal are preparing to lodge a complaint with Professional Game Match Officials (Pro Ref) regarding the controversial penalty awarded against them in this round of the Premier League.
In the 54th minute of Arsenal's 2-0 Premier League victory over Sunderland, referee John Brooks deemed that Ezri Konsa had committed a foul on Dan Ballard and awarded Sunderland a penalty. This decision sparked immense controversy; after the match, Mikel Arteta was furious, stating that under no circumstances could it ever be a penalty.
It is understood that Arsenal are preparing to contact Howard Webb and Pro Ref regarding the controversial penalty awarded against them in this match to seek further clarity surrounding the decision.
Journalist Henry Winter stated: Arsenal will contact Howard Webb and Pro Ref today to communicate over the penalty awarded to Sunderland; that penalty penalised a foul by Konsa, but it looked much more like Ballard performing a judo-style shoulder throw. In the end, it did not affect the match result, as David Raya saved the penalty, and Bruno Guimarães and Bukayo Saka subsequently scored. It will be interesting to see whether they mention that controversial goal from the Manchester derby to Webb. From a title race perspective, that decision arguably harmed Arsenal far more this weekend than this judo shoulder throw.
The Premier League saw ceaseless controversy over the past weekend, with Manchester City's awarded goal in the marquee Manchester derby sparking debate. Following that match, a Pro Ref statement acknowledged that an error in judgment had occurred in the decision and confirmed they had made contact with Manchester United regarding the incident.
