The FA have made a decision on punishing Gabriel Martinelli after he pushed referee Sam Barrott during Arsenal's FA Cup defeat to Southampton on Saturday evening.
The Gunners went into the quarter-final clash at St Mary's as heavy favourites, but they were beaten 2-1 by the Championship outfit. Shea Charles' 85th minute goal proved to be the difference between the two sides as Arsenal exited the competition.
Martinelli caused a stir with his actions during added on time. Arsenal were given a free-kick in the 94th minute when Max Dowman, considered one of the best young players in world football, was felled.
The Brazilian winger was extremely eager to restart play, and he pushed Barrott out of the way in an attempt to retrieve the ball. Barrott did not look impressed, and he quickly issued Martinelli a yellow card.
FA Make Decision on Punishing Martinelli
Gabriel Martinelli shown a yellow card vs Southampton
Martinelli's actions caused a serious stir. Ex-PGMOL chief Keith Hackett believes he should have been sent off. He said:
"When Arsenal's Martinelli pushed match referee Sam Barrott in a rather aggressive manner, there was no other outcome than Barrott showing a red card. In failing to do so, I was disappointed. Sam Barrott is a top class official, but on this occasion, he's let his colleagues down at all levels of the game."
Former Premier League referee Mark Halsey agreed with Hackett and accused Martinelli of 'total disrespect.' He commented:
"Gabriel Martinelli showed total disrespect for the match official Sam Barrott in that situation. Although Sam issued a yellow card, for me it's a red card. You just cannot put your hands on a referee, let alone push him out of the way. You've got to look around the country, up and down, Saturday and Sundays where we have local park referees going out and doing their games. What message does that send out to our local park referees?
"I thought Sam had a good game, he refereed the game well, but I think he let the refereeing community down by not sending off Gabriel Martinelli for pushing him at the award of a free-kick, so he could take the free-kick quickly."
However, it has now been reported that Martinelli will avoid retrospective action from the Football Association. With Barrott taking action on-field, the Athletic have stated he is not set to be punished further.
What Next For Arsenal
Arsenal in the Champions League
Arsenal in the Champions League
A few weeks ago, Arsenal had hopes they could win a historic quadruple. However, following their Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester City and their shock FA Cup exit at the hands of Southampton, they can now only win a maximum of two trophies.
Arsenal return to action on Tuesday, April 7 when they travel to Portugal to take on Sporting CP in their Champions League quarter-final first leg clash.
They restart their quest to become English champions for the first time since 2004 on Saturday, April 11 when they welcome Bournemouth to the Emirates Stadium. The Gunners currently have a nine-point lead over City at the top of the table.