According to _The Sun_ and _The Telegraph_, Arsenal are set to appeal against the straight red card shown to Max Dowman in the closing stages of last night’s defeat to Fleetwood Town.
The winger was given his marching orders with five minutes remaining for kicking out at Harrison Neal after the home side’s midfielder went in on him with a two-footed challenge on the touchline.
Dowman’s reaction in the heat of the moment was naive ([watch here](https://streamin.me/v/831e857c)), to say the least, but the force with which he caught Neal with his knee hardly amounted to ‘violent conduct’.
The minor scuffle that followed added to the drama, though nothing threatened to properly boil over. Most of the Arsenal players seemed more interested in protecting the teenager than escalating things.
Watching from the other side of the pitch, Arteta appeared to have little sympathy for the Hale End graduate as he trudged off. His apparent words of wisdom looked a little aggressive given the circumstances, although a replay may have softened his view of the incident.
Whether Arsenal believe they have a strong chance of overturning the decision before Sunday’s trip to Anfield is unclear. With a three-game ban hanging over Dowman and options thin on the flanks, you suspect they’ve decided it’s worth chancing their arm.
It’s worth bearing in mind that Dowman also picked up a red while on England under-19 duty earlier this month. We’ve not seen the incident, but it [reportedly involved him kicking out at another opponent.](https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/max-dowman-given-harsh-straight-081000021.html)
As things stand, he will miss the Liverpool game, the home fixture against Hull and the trip to Newcastle after the November interlull. He remains available for next week’s Champions League tie with Slavia Prague.
We’ve heard Arsenal hope to have Christos Tzolis back in full training next week, which would ease some of the pressure. More immediately, though, Arteta hinted that an ankle knock kept Noni Madueke out of last night’s trip. With Bukayo Saka already sidelined, that’s another concern he could do without.