Max Dowman was shown a straight red card as Arsenal were dumped out of the Carabao Cup by Fleetwood Town in a massive upset.
Mikel Arteta speaks to Max Dowman
An angry Mikel Arteta speaks to Max Dowman immediately after the Arsenal player's red card (Image: Sky Sports)
Mikel Arteta says he simply reminded Max Dowman of something they had discussed pre-match after publicly reprimanding the Arsenal teenager on a humiliating night for the club. League Two Fleetwood Town stunned the Premier League champions to reach the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup after Dowman was shown a late red card. Exactly 84 places separate the two teams in the English football pyramid with the Cod Army 18th in the fourth tier. But Fleetwood defied the odds to hold the Gunners to a 1-1 draw before pulling off an unforgettable upset on penalties. Goalkeeper Jay Lynch saved Bruno Guimaraes' spot-kick before teenage centre-back Conor Haughey lashed home his to secure a famous 5-3 shootout triumph.
That sparked a mass pitch invasion at Highbury Stadium in celebration of one of the biggest upsets in the competition's history.
But before that, Dowman was shown a straight red card with only four minutes left to play after kicking out in response to a strong Harrison Neal challenge.
A furious Arteta was shown giving the 16-year-old a stern telling-off as the academy talent made his way down the tunnel.
Asked about what he told Dowman - who scored a brace at Ipswich Town in the previous round of the Carabao Cup - by BBC Radio 5 Live, the Arsenal manager said simply: "Something that we discussed already before the match." He refused to go into any more detail beyond that.
But Arteta did go on to say: "We knew when we prepared the context of the match, we were very clear on the things to expect, the things that emotionally we have to dominate."
Asked if Dowman had apologised to his team-mates in the dressing room, the Premier League winner said: "I don't know. I didn't speak to anyone.
"I haven't seen it with the camera. You can't really see what happens. The decision was made by the referee and that's it. And even with 10 men, we have three big chances to score the second goal."
Speaking to Sky Sports, Arteta said: "I prefer to watch it back properly and then I can assess the situation." Asked a follow-up question on what the youngster can learn from the incident, his boss - clearly frustrated - added: "Yeah, we all learn from everything, yeah."
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Fleetwood Town v Arsenal - Carabao Cup Fourth Round
Max Dowman was shown a straight red card at Fleetwood (Image: Getty)
The Spaniard said on going out of the cup: "First of all congratulations to Fleetwood for going through to the next round in the manner they've done it and the atmosphere they've created. A really sad day for us. I cannot fault at all the attitude of the players.
"I haven't seen anybody not doing what is required at this level. But we had so much of the ball, so many chances, so many shots. If you want the margins to be bigger than going to penalties, obviously you need to capitalise on that and we didn't. Football is about that.
"We gave them almost nothing in the whole game. We created so many chances and didn't capitalise on that. Then margins become so small, that's it. This is football, that's the beauty of this competition and especially in this country. It's a very sad day.
"The attitude was good, otherwise I would be here absolutely fuming. I am sad. I think we are all sad. We have a massive responsibility to carry this badge in the best possible way.
"It was nothing to do with effort or application or determination to win. With what we produced, it should have showed in the scoreline."
Fulham loanee Aaron Loupalo-Bi had put the hosts in front after 21 minutes against a weakened Arsenal team on the Fylde coast, before Viktor Gyokeres stumbled home an equaliser five minutes after half-time.
While Arsenal pressed for a winner, Dowman's red card and some late saves from Lynch helped force the shootout.
Fleetwood are now into the quarter-finals of the League Cup for the first time in their history while a reeling Arsenal team will look to bounce back at Anfield against rivals Liverpool on Sunday.