Jack Grealish Avoids Red Card for Sandro Tonali Confrontation

Arsenal fans have taken to social media to question why Jack Grealish wasn’t sent off during Man City’s 1-1 draw with Newcastle United at St James’ Park. Footage seemingly caught Grealish kicking and landing an elbow on Magpies midfielder Sandro Tonali, but the England international was not punished for his actions.

While the home side would equalise moments later as Anthony Gordon fired home from the penalty spot, that didn’t stop several Gunners sharing their thoughts online, with many believing that had the 29-year-old been playing for them, that he would’ve been cautioned and potentially even sent off.

Arsenal Fans React to Grealish’s Elbow

Many could not hide their outrage

Grealish and Tonali were at each other’s throats for the entirety of the contest, with the pair getting booked for a scuffle midway through the second half. The moment in question, though, came even earlier.

While the incident was reviewed by VAR, it was deemed that there was not enough contact to pull play back and punish Grealish, which only seemed to anger Arsenal fans further. One fan’s summary of the decision largely covered that of the entire fanbase, saying: ‘If Grealish was wearing an Arsenal shirt he’d get sent off and suspended and Xhaka would be sent to Alcatraz.’

Another said: ‘how’s that not a sending-off for Grealish? Every week City go unpunished’. The sentiment was also shared by yet another fan who claimed that it was a ‘blatant elbow from Grealish.’

Frustrations from the Arsenal faithful largely stem from the fact that forward Leandro Trossard was sent off for delaying a restart in the title clash last weekend. Replays showed that there was less than a second between when the whistle was blown and the Belgian making contact with the ball. This would end up costing Mikel Arteta’s men as they spent the entirety of the second half of the game camped outside their own penalty area and lost all three points thanks to a John Stones injury-time leveller.

The impact of that decision, coupled with the annoyance of Grealish going unpunished against Newcastle was clear to one fan, who enraged that the former Aston Villa star: ‘KICKS AND ELBOWS HIS OPPONENT!! YET WE GET TWO REDS FOR DELAYING THE RESTART.’

Ederson Avoids Red Card

The goalkeeper was booked for conceding a penalty

Another contentious issue during the game was that goalkeeper Ederson was allowed to stay on the pitch after conceding a penalty early in the second period. The Brazilian took out an onrushing Anthony Gordon, but only received a yellow card.

An explanation was later given by the Premier League Match Centre account on X, who stated:

Gordon would then dust himself off and convert the spot kick, giving his side a valuable point against the champions. City will now look ahead to their Champions League tie against Slovan Bratislava, while Newcastle’s attentions will be on their Carabao Cup tie against AFC Wimbledon.