Champions League

MIKEL ARTETA had a night to forget as Arsenal lost at the San Siro – and even picked up a bizarre booking of his own. The Gunners boss watched his side labour to a 1-0 Champions League defeat to Inter Milan on Wednesday.Mikel Arteta found himself in trouble with the referee at Arsenal vs Inter MilanCredit: GettyThe Gunners boss appeared to interfere with play just after the hour markCredit: TNT SPORTSHe was shown an immediate yellow card after trying to grab the ballCredit: BBCArteta cut a frustrated figure on the touchline as Arsenal wasted a host of chances. The 42-year-old watched his side go down to an Inter penalty after Mikel Merino controversially handled in the box.But it was Arteta’s use of his own hands that got him into hot water just after the hour mark.Matteo Darmian was scrapping for the ball by the dugouts with Arsenal’s Ben White. READ MORE ON FOOTBALLThe ball looked to be going out for a throw, with Arteta rushing out of his technical area to reach down and grab it.But the spin of the ball appeared to keep it in play, with a fuming Darmian claiming he was impeded. Arteta was immediately booked by Romanian referee Istvan Kovacs, as deafening whistles rained down from the Inter supporters.It was not immediately clear if the Arsenal boss was cautioned for handball, or leaving his technical area to interfere with play. Most read in FootballFOOTBALL FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALSUefa clarified the situation following the final whistle, confirming Arteta went in the book for a “lack of respect for the game” and picking up the ball. Arteta immediately held his hands up in apology after the incident, with his intervention deemed accidental. Arsenal player ratings v Inter Milan (1)If the Arsenal chief had deliberately entered play and stopped the attack, he would have been red-carded.One fan joked on X: “Using their dark arts again I see.”While another laughed: “Yellow for leaving his technical area. Yellow for entering the pitch. Yellow for handling the ball. Should have been sent off.”Following Wednesday’s game, Arteta launched into a furious rant against the officials. Arsenal player ratings v Inter MilanTOOTHLESS Arsenal were beaten by a superb Italian job in Milan as they lost 1-0 thanks to a controversial penalty.Here’s how the Gunners stars were rated by SunSport’s Tony Robertson.David Raya – 6Unfortunate with the penalty on an otherwise quiet night. Passing was below par with on three out of nine long passes finding their mark.Ben White – 7Dependable as ever at right back. Can’t be blamed for the defeat from a defensive standpoint.William Saliba – 7Marshalled defence well and produced some strong passes.  Three clearances and six duels won said everything about his performance.Gabriel Magalhaes – 7Had a slightly better time in duels than Saliba but was worse on the ball.Jurrien Timber – 7 Had a good rapport with Martinelli down the left flank. Dependable but undone by the controversial penalty call.Mikel Merino – 5 Difficult to see what he brings to the midfield at the moment. Clearly Arteta likes his height and strength, but not on the same wavelength as team-mates tonight. Unlucky to give away the penalty.Thomas Partey – 6Should have been given more licence to roam forward in the second half. But didn’t look like he had the legs to do that job.Bukayo Saka – 6Captain for the night with Odegaard only fit for the bench. Saka was always a threat, but all too often or not chose the wrong option to go inside or out.Gabriel Martinelli – 7Flashes of brilliance and a thorn throughout the clash. Created four chances but team-mates were unable to help him out.Kai Havertz – 6  Couple of flashes of brilliance, including a beautiful curled effort at goal that forced Sommer to punch clear, but needed to be a stronger force up top. Went off with a bloody head in injury time.Leandro Trossard – 6 Buzzed around and had threatening moments. But just didn’t get the ball enough in dangerous positions.The Arsenal boss claimed the decision to give a penalty against Merino was “harsh.”And he believed the Gunners should have had a spot kick of their own after Inter’s keeper Yann Sommer took out the Spaniard. Arteta said: “We were very harshly done.”I don’t understand [Inter’s penalty]. It is a deflection. There is no danger, no reaction because it is very close to his body.“There is nothing he can do. I don’t know how you can get away from it.READ MORE SUN STORIES“We were told at the start of the season that was not going to be a penalty but it was a different story.“But if that is a penalty then when Merino is punched in the head it is one thousand percent a penalty. It is very difficult to accept that.” More

BARCELONA star Pau Cubarsi needed ten stitches in his face after sustaining a horror injury. The worrying scenes occurred during the Catalan giants’ 5-2 Champions League win over Red Star Belgrade last night.Pau Cubarsi suffered horror facial injuries after being studded in the faceCredit: FC BARCELONAHe required ten stitches in his faceCredit: FC BARCELONABut Cubarsi has revealed he is OKCredit: fc BARCELONABlood poured down the side of his face as he was subbed offCredit: ReutersCubarsi tried to head away from a corner and was caught by the studs of Uros Spajic.The 17-year-old wonderkid went down holding his face as blood began to pour from his wounds.Medics rushed over to him and several towels that were used to patch up the cuts were left covered in blood.Cubarsi was taken off in the 67th minute and he required ten stitches.READ MORE IN FOOTBALLBarca boss Hansi Flick confirmed after the game that the centre-back was “fine”.And the player later showed off his injuries on social media alongside the caption “I’m OK.”Team-mate Alejandro Balde videoed himself grimacing after seeing the state of his horror wounds.Cubarsi, who made his debut for the club aged 16, is the latest in a long line of young La Masia graduates playing a key role at Barca this season.Most read in FootballFOOTBALL FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALSBalde, 21, Hector Fort, 18, Gavi, 20, Marc Casado, 21, Fermin Lopez, 21 and Lamine Yamal, 17, have all featured regularly for the first-team under Flick.Barca are currently top of LaLiga and have a nine point advantage over their El Clasico rivals Real Madrid. Wojciech Szczęsny spotted ‘smoking cigarette’ in Real Madrid changing rooms after Barcelona’s El Clasico winThe wonderkid was covered in blood as he left the fieldCredit: AFPAlejandro Balde grimaced after seeing the injuries More

MIKEL ARTETA was left seething with the officials after Arsenal were sunk at the San Siro after a tale of TWO penalties.The Gunners boss raged over Hakan Calhanoglu’s first half spot-kick for a controversial handball against Mikel Merino that earned Inter Milan a famous Champions League victory.Mikel Arteta was left seething with the officials after Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat to Inter MilanCredit: GettyInter goalkeeper Yann Sommer appeared to punch Mikel Merino in the head, but Arsenal were not awarded a penaltyCredit: AFPInter’s goal came from controversial handball decision involving Merino as wellCredit: TNT SPORTSAnd Arteta then argued his side deserved to have a penalty of their own “one thousand percent” after Merino was PUNCHED by Inter keeper Yann Sommer in the head.Arteta said: “We were very harshly done. I don’t understand [Inter’s penalty]. It is a deflection. There is no danger, no reaction because it is very close to his body.“There is nothing he can do. I don’t know how you can get away from it.“We were told at the start of the season that was not going to be a penalty but it was a different story.READ MORE IN FOOTBALL“But if that is a penalty then when Merino is punched in the head it is one thousand percent a penalty. It is very difficult to accept that.”Arsenal legend and TNT pundit Martin Keown said: “It was a controversial moment. Fine margins. I don’t believe it was a penalty and I feel it was really harsh.“Where are you supposed put your arm in that position? Who’s made these rules? Have they played the game?“Mikel Merino is so close and the arm has come up to go into a challenge. It is really harsh.Most read in FootballMartin Keown gave his thoughts on the controversial refereeing decisionsCredit: RexMartin Keown’s assessmentHere’s a look at what Arsenal hero Martin Keown made of the referee’s decisions…On Yann Sommer clashing with Mikel Merino…”You can see there is a follow-through. On another night the referee might see that as a violent act.”He [referee Istvan Kovacs] was levelling it up and dishing it out to players, but he didn’t level up on penalties.”The one against Arsenal is really harsh.”On the penalty decision…”It was a controversial moment. Fine margins. I don’t believe it was a penalty and I feel it was really harsh.”Where are you supposed put your arm in that position? Who’s made these rules? Have they played the game?”Mikel Merino is so close to Mehdi Taremi and the arm has come up to go into a challenge – it is really harsh.”Merino is preparing to go with his first action and then the ball deflects.”FOOTBALL FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALSMerino is preparing to go with his first action and then the ball deflects.”On Sommer’s connection with Merino, Keown added: “You can see there is a follow-through. On another night the referee might see that as a violent act.Thierry Henry aims huge dig at Arsenal in awkward CBS Sports moment as fans ask ‘why are you s***ting on your own club?“He [referee Istvan Kovacs] was levelling it up and dishing it out to players, but he didn’t level up on penalties.”Arteta confirmed that Merino was taken off at half time as a result of that collision with Sommer, admitting he did not feel well before kick-off and was left “groggy”.Arsenal have now lost three of their last six games in all competitions as their poor run continues both in the Premier League and in Europe.They now travel to Stamford Bridge to take on in-form Chelsea on Sunday, with Kai Havertz now also a doubt after requiring stitches following a clash of heads late on against Inter.But the visitors had their chances, attempting 20 shots, their most without scoring in a Champions League game since November 2006 against CSKA Moscow.Arteta added: “I’m very proud of my players. If we play like we did tonight we can win at Chelsea.“With the number of situations we created we should have scored. “But that was more us tonight, we dominated one of the best teams in Europe in their stadium, I’m proud of them.READ MORE SUN STORIES“The worst thing of the night is the result, the performance, attitude, the dominance against one of the best teams in Europe, I haven’t seen it in the games I watched.“We had many situations we could have resolved much better and scored at least two goals and we are extremely frustrated – in both boxes we did not do what we have to do.”Mikel Merino was substituted at half-time after feeling ‘groggy’ from the collisionCredit: PAKai Havertz is a doubt for Arsenal’s trip to Stamford Bridge after requiring stitches after a clash of headsCredit: GettyArsenal player ratings v Inter MilanTOOTHLESS Arsenal were beaten by a superb Italian job in Milan as they lost 1-0 thanks to a controversial penalty.Here’s how the Gunners stars were rated by SunSport’s Tony Robertson.David Raya – 6Unfortunate with the penalty on an otherwise quiet night. Passing was below par with on three out of nine long passes finding their mark.Ben White – 7Dependable as ever at right back. Can’t be blamed for the defeat from a defensive standpoint.William Saliba – 7Marshalled defence well and produced some strong passes.  Three clearances and six duels won said everything about his performance.Gabriel Magalhaes – 7Had a slightly better time in duels than Saliba but was worse on the ball.Jurrien Timber – 7 Had a good rapport with Martinelli down the left flank. Dependable but undone by the controversial penalty call.Mikel Merino – 5 Difficult to see what he brings to the midfield at the moment. Clearly Arteta likes his height and strength, but not on the same wavelength as team-mates tonight. Unlucky to give away the penalty.Thomas Partey – 6Should have been given more licence to roam forward in the second half. But didn’t look like he had the legs to do that job.Bukayo Saka – 6Captain for the night with Odegaard only fit for the bench. Saka was always a threat, but all too often or not chose the wrong option to go inside or out.Gabriel Martinelli – 7Flashes of brilliance and a thorn throughout the clash. Created four chances but team-mates were unable to help him out.Kai Havertz – 6  Couple of flashes of brilliance, including a beautiful curled effort at goal that forced Sommer to punch clear, but needed to be a stronger force up top. Went off with a bloody head in injury time.Leandro Trossard – 6 Buzzed around and had threatening moments. But just didn’t get the ball enough in dangerous positions. More

TOOTHLESS Arsenal were beaten by a superb Italian job in Milan as they lost 1-0 thanks to a controversial penalty.After losing at the weekend, Mikel Arteta was hoping his team could bounce back with a win in the Champions League.Mikel Arteta saw Arsenal fall to a frustrating 1-0 lossCredit: GettyMikel Merino disappointing before he gave away a controversial penalty for handballCredit: GettyGabriel Martinelli was a threat throughoutCredit: GettyThey were adamant they should have had a penalty in the first half when Mikel Merino was seemingly punched in the head by Yann Sommer as the Swiss international cleared the ball away.However, in first-half injury time, Merino was involved again at the other end as he gave away a penalty when the ball struck his raised hand from close range.That was converted by Hakan Calhanoglu, and Arteta rang the changes by introducing Gabriel Jesus at half-time.But the Gunners seemed to have wet powder at the San Siro as their attacking efforts fell flat, with many of their usual suspects in attack flattering to deceive.READ MORE IN FOOTBALLDavid Raya – 6Unfortunate with the penalty on an otherwise quiet night.Passing was below par with on three out of nine long passes finding their mark.Ben White – 7Dependable as ever at right back.Can’t be blamed for the defeat from a defensive standpoint.Most read in FootballBEST FREE BET SIGN UP OFFERS FOR UK BOOKMAKERSWilliam Saliba – 7Marshalled defence well and produced some strong passes. Three clearances and six duels won said everything about his performance.Huge Arsenal boost as Martin Odegaard returns to training ahead of Inter Milan clash Gabriel Magalhaes – 7Had a slightly better time in duels than Saliba but was worse on the ball.Booked.Jurrien Timber – 7 (off Zinchenko 82 mins)Had a good rapport with Martinelli down the left flank.Dependable like the rest of the defence but undone by the controversial penalty call.Mikel Merino – 5 (off for Jesus half-time)Difficult to see what he brings to the midfield at the moment. Clearly Arteta likes his height and strength, but not on the same wavelength as team-mates tonight.Unlucky to give away the penalty for handball after being clattered by Sommer earlier on in the evening.Thomas Partey – 6Should have been given more licence to roam forward in the second half.But didn’t look like he had the legs to do that job.Bukayo Saka – 6Captain for the night with Odegaard only fit for the bench.Saka was always a threat, but all too often or not chose the wrong option to go inside or out.Gabriel Martinelli – 7Flashes of brilliance and a thorn throughout the clash.Created four chances but team-mates were unable to help him out.Kai Havertz – 6 (off Odegaard 90 mins)Couple of flashes of brilliance, including a beautiful curled effort at goal that forced Sommer to punch clear, but needed to be a stronger force up top.Went off with a bloody head in injury time.Leandro Trossard – 6 (off Nwaneri 82 mins)Buzzed around and had threatening moments.But just didn’t get the ball enough in dangerous positions.SubstitutesGabriel Jesus (on half-time for Merino) – 6Didn’t offer much after coming on. Booked.Oleksandr Zinchenko (on Timber) – 6Tidy in possession but rarely moved the ball forward.READ MORE SUN STORIESEthan Nwaneri (on Trossard 82 mins) – 6Skied a shot over the bar in injury time.Martin Odegaard (on Havertz 90 mins) – N/ANot enough time to make impact. More