Mikel Arteta crowned the new 'Sir Alex Ferguson of the Premier League' after angry Arsenal rant
Mikel Arteta was furious with John Brooks' decision to award a penalty against Arsenal
Jamie Carragher has described Mikel Arteta as the new 'Sir Alex Ferguson of the Premier League' after slamming the penalty awarded against Arsenal at the weekend.
Early into the second half of the Gunners ' clash against Sunderland on Saturday night, Ezri Konsa was adjudged to have committed a foul when he wrestled Dan Ballard to the ground inside the box. John Brooks pointed to the spot, and the Black Cats were given the chance to break the deadlock at the Stadium of Light.
David Raya denied Enzo Le Fee from 12 yards; a few moments later, Bruno Guimaraes broke the deadlock, smashing the ball into the top right-hand corner past Robin Roefs. During an interview with Sky Sports after the game, which ended 2-0 courtesy of a stoppage-time penalty by Bukayo Saka, Arteta described the decision as 'unacceptable'.
The Arsenal boss then doubled down in his post-match press conference. Later that evening, the Gunners asked ProRef, formerly known as the PGMOL, for an explanation.
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During the Monday Night Football show on Sky Sports, Carragher reacted to Arteta's assault on the officials. The Liverpool legend compared the Spaniard to Sir Alex, who infamously criticised referees without fear of reprisal.
Last season, Arsenal didn't concede a single spot-kick in the Premier League, and Caragher reckons Arteta has used his status to influence the decision-making of match officials.
"This was Mikel Arteta becoming the Sir Alex Ferguson of the Premier League right now," said the former Reds defender. "He's the don at the moment; he's the Premier League champion.
"A lot of new managers about... he's been in his role for six or seven years, and he feels he's in a position of power to say, 'Yeah, it wasn't a penalty'. And I don't think it was a penalty.
"But it'd be interesting to see how long it takes for another referee to give a penalty against Arsenal in a similar situation.
"I thought it was very interesting in the press conference; one of the journalists made a point about, no matter what question you asked him, he kept going back to the penalty, so he was determined to get the narrative out that this won't happen again to his club.
"But that's a manager - we've seen it with Sir Alex Ferguson, we've seen it with Jose Mourinho."
Rob Edwards agreed. The former Luton, Middlesbrough, and Wolves boss added: "I think Jamie's right. He's put himself into a position now where he's looking after his team and his football club, and people will listen to the Premier League-winning manager, won't they?
"They will listen to him; he's a powerful voice there now..."
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