Arteta Praises Referee's Bravery for Disallowing West Ham's Late Equalizer, Points to Clear Foul on Raya

Arsenal manager Miguel Arteta praised the referee's bravery after West Ham United's late equalizer was disallowed in a match where the Gunners won 1-0. Arsenal moved closer to the Premier League title with their victory over West Ham in the London derby, with Leandro Trossard scoring the winning goal in the 83rd minute.

Following the result, Arsenal extended their tally to 79 points from 36 matches, maintaining their lead at the top of the table. They are five points ahead of second-placed Manchester City, who have played one more game. West Ham remains at 36 points from 36 matches in 18th place on the table.

However, in the 90+5th minute, a dramatic moment unfolded. West Ham earned a corner kick from the right side when Jarrod Bowen crossed into the box, and Arsenal's defense cleared the ball to Callum Wilson, who struck it across the goal line. Nevertheless, the referee checked the VAR and determined that in the preceding play, Pablo had used his arm to obstruct David Raya's ability to jump for the ball within the six-yard box, constituting a foul. West Ham was therefore denied the goal, which sparked considerable controversy.

After the match, Arteta commended the refereeing team's courage in disallowing West Ham's goal and affirmed that Raya was clearly fouled. "When I need to criticize, I do. Today I must praise them—the VAR team," Arteta said. "You need tremendous courage to stand firm and allow the referee to review the incident."

"When you watch the replay, there's no doubt it's a clear foul. They were very brave. That incident deserved that decision. In my opinion, it was very clear. This is the rule, and we demand consistency. The foul on Raya was obvious and evident."