ARSENAL fans are convinced Jurrien Timber “fooled” the referee and commentator by faking a hilarious gaffe.
The Gunners drew 1-1 with Chelsea yesterday as they slipped nine points behind league leaders Liverpool.
In the second-half, there were ironic cheers from Blues fans when Timber seemingly messed up a throw-in.
The Dutch defender somehow chucked the ball into his own back and was allowed to retake it as it had not entered the pitch.
Sky Sports commentator Peter Drury laughed that you “couldn’t do that if you tried.”
But Arsenal, who hit the headlines earlier this season for their use of the “dark arts”, have potentially used their rule-bending playbook again.
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It turns out Timber’s throw-in blunder occurred while team-mate Kai Havertz was off the pitch receiving treatment after a cut in his head re-opened and blood began to pour down his face.
And Gunners fans reckon it was a deliberate action to waste time as they were a player short with the German being patched up.
One supporter said: “The commentators and the ref thought that was a genuine attempt. Bro fooled them.”
Another added: “Incredible bit of acting, had me fooled until I realised Havertz was off the pitch.”
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A third commented: “Now this is the dark arts I wanna see.”
More reacted: “‘You couldn’t do that if you tried’ to something Timber did very deliberately.”
Other fans said: “100 per cent time wasting cause we had ten-men on the pitch from an injury.”
Arsenal ratings v Chelsea
Here’s how SunSport’s Tony Robertson rated the Gunners:
David Raya – 7
Tipped a shot over the bar early on from Cole Palmer and claimed crosses well. Could do nothing about Neto’s crisp strike.
Ben White – 5
Poor when trying to stop a Neto cross that Malo Gusto should have then scored. Booked for a foul on the winger later on.
William Saliba – 6
Steady alongside Gabriel but was more in the covering role so had less to do. Struggled with his line-breaking passes today on the whole. Failed to engage Neto as he raced towards the area before narrowing a shot into the corner.
Gabriel Magalhaes – 6
Made some vital blocks when the midfield was bypassed and was generally the busier of himself and Saliba.
Jurrien Timber – 6
Busy day for the defender in trying to keep Madueke quiet, a task he largely succeeded in. But he wasn’t able to heavily influence the game going forward since the ball never really got to him. Most entertaining part of the game before the goal probably came with the 57th-minute throw-in that slipped out of his hands and over his head.
Thomas Partey – 6
Struggled to contain Cole Palmer early on but grew into the game and got on the ball plenty, although he was somewhat wayward with his long-range passing. After a bad touch he managed to poke the ball back to Odegaard before he provided the assist.
Declan Rice – 6
Made some vital defensive contributions to block some Chelsea chances and displayed quick thinking at a free-kick to put Havertz through to score, but was marginally offside. Subbed off after 71 minutes.
Martin Odegaard – 7
Back in the starting XI for the first time since August. Has been a big miss for Arteta’s side but may take some time to get back to his best and was on the ball nowhere near enough at the Bridge. Won the ball back before providing the assist for Martinelli’s opener.
Bukayo Saka – 5
Showed superb defensive work rate to keep Marc Cucurella in check, though this inversely meant he was unable to contribute as much in attack. Subbed off after pulling up injured in the 79th minute.
Gabriel Martinelli – 8
Should have done better when given the chance to score past Sanchez in the penalty area after Saka won the ball back high. Kept at it and scored against the run of play in the second half with a nice finish to Sanchez’s near post. Hooked after 71 minutes.
Kai Havertz – 6
Appeared to have poked home the opening goal with a sharp bit of movement but was fractionally offside. Booked for not going off the pitch when bleeding on his head.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
