There are again complaints about the VAR in the Premier League. Arsenal coach says defeat was unfair

Yesterday, in the sixteenth round of the English Premier League, Aston Villa triumphed over the country's vice-champion, Arsenal, at their home ground (1-0). For the "Lions," this victory at their home stadium marked a record fifteenth win, and the team's coach, Unai Emery, became the fifth individual to achieve this feat.

After the match, both the players and the coaching staff had queries regarding the quality of refereeing during the game. Initially, Douglas Luiz made contact with Gabriel Jesus' leg. While VAR assistants reviewed the incident, the head referee of the match, Jarred Gillett, chose to allow the game to continue. Later, towards the end of the match, at the 90th minute, Gillett disallowed Kai Havertz's goal for a handball.

Arsenal's coach, Mikel Arteta, who watched the game from the stands due to suspension, clearly expressed his disappointment in post-match interviews and during the press conference. When asked about the referee's decisions by Sky Sports journalists, he initially declined to comment. However, when further questioned if he had an opinion on the matter, he simply replied, "I have a strong opinion."

Arteta insisted that his team did not deserve to lose, stating:

"I believe we were the better team and did not deserve to lose – but that's football."

Arsenal's captain, Martin Ødegaard, concurred with his manager, saying:

"We had enough chances to win the game. I felt they didn't create anything; they just had one goal. But that's how it goes sometimes.

We gifted them an easy goal, but after that, we controlled the game and should have scored. We didn't deserve to lose, but that's football."

Following the defeat in yesterday's match, Arsenal slipped to the second position in the league table, conceding the lead to Liverpool.