Arsenal fans were furious after Antonio Rudiger escaped a red card despite appearing to stamp on Myles Lewis-Skelly. The two came together during an incident-laden affair at the Bernabeu on Wednesday night.
Arsenal headed to Spain with a 3-0 advantage after the first leg, with a 2-1 win on the night booking their spot in the Champions League semi-finals. Despite progressing, Arsenal supporters were still left furious after ex-Chelsea star Rudiger was allowed to stay on the pitch.
During the game, the German was involved in a foot race with Lewis-Skelly. The latter fell, with Rudiger planting his foot on the youngster’s groin, leaving him wincing in pain. And while it looked accidental, Arsenal fans were convinced there was intent and former Chelsea man Rudiger should have been given his marching orders.
One fan wrote: “How Rudiger didn’t get a card for his stamp on MLS is beyond me,” with another adding: “Rudiger can punch and then stamp on Lewis-Skelly and the ref waves play on…”
Criticism continued to come throughout the game. One Arsenal fan said: “That Rudiger stamp on Lewis-Skelly is a red card in any game,” with a further supporter writing: “How is Rudiger still in this game???? That stamp was deliberate and should be a red card.”
There appeared to be widespread agreement on the incident as Arsenal fans expressed their anger. Another fan said: “Rudiger is filthy how can he get away with that stamp on Lewis skelly,” with yet another concluding: “That’s a stamp by Rudiger on Skelley. Rubbish! He did that on purpose.”
The incident was just one of a matter of controversial moments during the game in Spain. Arsenal were handed a first-half penalty after a VAR check, only for Bukayo Saka to miss.
Real Madrid then thought they had a spot-kick of their own as Kylian Mbappe fell under Declan Rice‘s challenge – the latter being booked. But a lengthy VAR check saw the decision overturned and his yellow card rescinded.
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There was also an angry clash between Saka and Dani Carvajal in the tunnel before the former scored Arsenal’s opener on the night. Vinicius Jr replied as he took advantage of William Saliba‘s error but that was not enough for the Spanish giants to stage a heroic comeback and Gabriel Martinelli sealed victory and a whopping 5-1 aggregate triumph.
Arsenal will now take on French side Paris Saint-Germain in the last four. The Ligue 1 giants progressed past Aston Villa on Tuesday evening.
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