Gabriel Martinelli pushed referee Sam Barrott in the closing stages of Arsenal’s 2-1 defeat to Southampton in the FA Cup in an incident branded “total disrespect”
Referee Sam Barrott booked Arsenal star Gabriel Martinelli for pushing him
Gabriel Martinelli is expected to escape further punishment from the Football Association after shoving the referee during Arsenal’s FA Cup upset defeat to Southampton.
The Arsenal winger received a booking in the dying moments of the shock 2-1 loss at St Mary’s which dumped Mikel Arteta’s side out of the competition after pushing official Sam Barrott in the arm. The incident unfolded in the 94th minute as Martinelli shoved the official out of the way while seemingly trying to take a quick free kick.
However, with Barrott addressing the matter during the match, the Athletic reports the Gunners star will not face additional sanctions from the FA, despite calls him to be punished further for the “total disrespect”.
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Former Premier League official Mark Halsey condemned the Brazilian’s behaviour and argued he deserved a straight red card, reports the Mirror.
He said: “Referee Sam Barrott awarded a free-kick to Arsenal, Martinelli comes rushing in and he pushes Sam out of the way. Now I’m sorry, Gabriel Martinelli showed total disrespect for the match official Sam Barrott in that situation.
“Although Sam issued a yellow card, for me it’s a red card. You just cannot put your hands on a referee, let alone push him out of the way.
“You’ve got to look around the country, up and down, Saturday and Sundays where we have local park referees going out and doing their games. What message does that send out to our local park referees?
“I thought Sam had a good game, he refereed the game well, but I think he let the refereeing community down by not sending off Gabriel Martinelli for pushing him at the award of a free-kick, so he could take the free-kick quickly.”
Ref Support UK, a charity which trains and supports officials, wrote on X: “The FA cannot let him get away with that. This will be a missed opportunity if they don’t take action against Arsenal and Martinelli.
“There has been too many incidents in football where refs are pushed or shoved and football cannot let it escalate any more. I would have loved to see the ref send him off.”
This marks the second occasion this campaign that Martinelli has escaped retrospective punishment after demands were made for him to face a suspension following a shocking incident involving Liverpool star Conor Bradley.
During that episode, Martinelli shoved the Liverpool defender off the pitch while he was down in agony with what turned out to be a season-ending injury. He later issued an apology for his behaviour.
This latest Martinelli transgression capped off a dreadful evening for the Gunners who witnessed their treble aspirations go up in flames.
Having suffered defeat in the Carabao Cup final prior to the international break, the visit to the Championship outfit seemed the ideal tonic. Instead, they were justifiably beaten with Shea Charles netting a decisive late strike.
The Saints will now meet Manchester City at Wembley, leaving Arsenal to concentrate on the Champions League and Premier League.
