Arsenal hopeful of reducing Gabriel ban by using precedent set by Chelsea

Gunners to adopt precedent used by Chelsea to fight three-game suspension while Blues are considering Costa appeal

Tuesday 22 September 2015 07:26 BST

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Arsenal will use a precedent set by Chelsea in an attempt to get Gabriel’s three-game ban for violent conduct during Saturday’s match at Stamford Bridge reduced to one.

The north London club believe that Chelsea’s two successful appeals, first to bring down Nemanja Matic’s three-game ban after the midfielder was sent off against Burnley in February and then Cesc Fabregas’s following a straight red card at West Bromwich Albion in May, could ensure that the Brazilian defender does not miss a key period of Premier League games. Both Fabregas and Matic served one-game bans as a result.

A one-match ban for alleged violent conduct against Chelsea’s Diego Costa would mean he misses tomorrow’s League Cup tie with Tottenham. But there are also the tough visit to high-flying Leicester and Manchester United at the Emirates to follow.

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Thibaut Courtois

An initially innocuous challenge from Alexis Sanchez cut his afternoon short. 5

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Branislav Ivanovic

With his menacing gallops up field, Chelsea’s reliable right-back delivered a predictably assured display. Whenever Mesut Ozil drifted onto the flank, the German was second best. 7

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Gary Cahill

Launching into a wild tackle on Alexis Sanchez, Gary Cahill’s actions led to unsavoury scenes on the touchline. With his manager squabbling with Arsene Wenger for much of the tie as a result, the England centre-back delivered a decent shift. 7

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John Terry

Stood firm in a typically combative manner. Dealt with the threats of Danny Welbeck and Alexis Sanchez with relative ease for large periods. 7

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Cesar Azpilicueta

Predominantly tasked with dealing with either Santi Cazorla or Mesut Ozil, with the pair swapping positions often, the Spanish defender was up to the task. 7

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Nemanja Matic

Providing the steel to the support Cesc Fabregas’s silky play, the Serb proved once again why Jose Mourinho re-signed him in January. A commanding day’s work. 7

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Cesc Fabregas

Played in Eden Hazard to win a penalty in the first half after a superb run through a labyrinth of red shirts. Was booed regularly by a small section of Gunners fans but responded in the best way possible. 7

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Andre Schurrle

Substituted in the 68th minute, after a lively display, the German midfielder didn’t stop running. Lacking a precision to his passing which could have put Chelsea into commanding positions, however, he may believe he could have done more. 6

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Oscar

Put in a defensive shift when called upon while providing his usual mix of flair and composure up front. 6

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Eden Hazard

After expertly ‘winning’ the penalty which gave Chelsea a springboard of which to build upon, the Belgian was a constant threat who Arsenal struggled to contend with. 7

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Diego Costa

Got on the score sheet again with a delightful chip over Wojciech Szczesny’s head, but may be remembered for an extraordinary miss from four yards in the latter stages. An otherwise impressive display. 7

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Wojciech Szczesny

Had little to do before he had to pick the ball out of his own net after Hazard’s penalty. Still looked nervy when given time, and left himself exposed to Costa’s chip when he chose to come out, though there was little else he could do. 6

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Calum Chambers

Struggled to deal with the pace of Chelsea’s counter-attack and picked up a booking when he brought down Hazard. Could’ve been sent-off when he tackled Schurrle on the edge of the box. 5

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Per Mertesacker

Tried to boss the defence lie usual, but couldn’t cope with the pace of Costa when the striker was allowed to run at him, such as the second goal demonstrated. 6

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Laurent Koscielny

Dived in on Hazard to give away the penalty but the Belgian should’ve been stopped a long time before he got there. Appears to have lost the reliability he and Mertesacker built last season. 5

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Kieran Gibbs

Offered Arsenal an out on the left flank and combined well with Sanchez. Looked much more exposed when Özil played in front of him, but probably Arsenal’s best defender on the day. 6

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Mathieu Flamini

Brought control to the midfield and played quite well without being spectacular. Put in a few hard tackles in the first half, but he certainly isn’t the answer to Arsenal’s problems at defensive midfield. 6

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Mesut Ozil

How he managed to last the 90 minutes is anyone’s guess. Looked off the pace and was poor throughout, his touch to knock the ball straight out on the hour mark summed up his performance. 4

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Jack Wilshere

Had a brilliant chance to level the score after half-an-hour but his heavy touch allowed Cech to rush out and gather the ball. Showed two lovely runs in the second half, but left when the game was over. 7

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Santi Cazorla

Went close for Arsenal when he shot first time from the edge of the box, only to see it go narrowly wide of the right-hand post. Was far from impressed at being subbed off. 6

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Alexis Sanchez

A constant threat down the left wing and posed a number of problems to Ivanovic. Wenger is still yet to work out where he can get the best out of Sanchez though. Terrific in tracking back, and lucky not to get hurt from Cahill’s challenge. 7

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Danny Welbeck

Appeared a lonely figure up front at times, and when he needed to put in a big performance he ultimately failed. Still, showed some classy touches, especially when he floated left towards Sanchez. 6

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Arsenal have until Thursday to challenge an additional charge of improper conduct over Gabriel’s failure to leave the pitch. They may seek to argue the player’s lack of English is a mitigating factor. Santi Cazorla became involved in helping translate during the on-field mêlée. But there is no doubt that the player did take a long time to leave the field.

Meanwhile, Chelsea are considering whether to appeal against a violent conduct charge which could result in Costa being banned for at least three games, to the fury of manager Jose Mourinho.

The west London club were not commenting on the charge, handed down yesterday after Arsenal defender Laurent Koscielny was caught by the Brazilian’s swinging arm in an ill-tempered clash at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

Costa has until 6pm today to respond to the charge after the incident was missed by match officials.

The charges will certainly incur the wrath of Mourinho, who was seething when Costa was retrospectively sanctioned in February for treading on Liverpool’s Emre Can, part of what the Chelsea manager perceived as a “campaign” against his side.

Chelsea defender Kurt Zouma inadvertently added to the controversy engulfing Costa by stating in a television interview after the game on Saturday that the striker “likes to cheat a lot”.

The Frenchman posted a clarification on Twitter, saying: “Sorry for any confusion, English is not my first language & I did not mean to accuse anyone of cheating. Simply to say Diego is a player who puts pressure on his opponents & who I have huge respect for.”

A Chelsea spokesman said: “It’s a bit harsh to take literally the words of a young player speaking in his second language immediately after a game,” said the spokesman. “Kurt is deeply upset that his words have been used to attack a team-mate.”

The 20-year-old had told beIN Sports: “Everyone knows Diego and this guy likes to cheat a lot and put the opponents out of his game and that happened in the game. He’s a real nice guy in the life and we are very proud to have him.”

The FA disclosed that Costa’s alleged act of violent conduct – in the 43rd minute of the 2-0 win over Arsenal – had not been included in referee Mike Dean’s post-match report because he did not see it. Costa also placed two hands on Koscielny’s face seconds before the arm was swung. The incident will be referred to a panel of three former elite referees.

The FA said in a statement: “Off-the-ball incidents which are not seen at the time by the match officials are referred to a panel of three former elite referees.

“Each referee panel member will review the video footage independently of one another to determine whether they consider it a sending-off offence. For retrospective action to be taken, and an FA charge to follow, the decision by the panel must be unanimous.”

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