Gary Neville immediately spotted something was wrong before Bruno Fernandes opened the scoring for Manchester United against Arsenal.
After defending for most of the first half, Bruno Fernandes scored a superb free-kick to give Manchester United a lead at Old Trafford heading into the break.
It was United’s first shot on target, and Bruno Fernandes superbly curled the ball up and over Arsenal’s wall to beat David Raya.
However, United legend Gary Neville spotted on commentary that Arsenal’s wall seemed to have been marched further back than usual by referee Anthony Taylor.
During the break, it was revealed that Arsenal’s wall was 11.2 yards away from the ball – slightly more than the 10 yards allowed within the rules.
Photo by Ed Sykes/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
Photo by Ed Sykes/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
Mikel Arteta shares thoughts on Bruno Fernandes free-kick
There was a similar incident in the second half when Arsenal were awarded a free-kick on the edge of the box and United players complained that they had also been marched too far back.
After the full-time whistle, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta gave his thoughts on the incident and he chose to praise Fernandes for being “smarter than the ref”.
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“He’s been smart and he took advantage, that is football,” Arteta said in his post-match comments.
“He’s been smarter than the ref, that’s okay, they allowed him to do it.”
The incident was also spoken about by Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice, who insisted players on the pitch were aware that the wall was placed further back.
“The wall did feel far back. Even on our free-kick, when Martin took it, they felt far back as well, more than usual. But the referee makes that decision,” Rice said.
Bruno Fernandes free-kick causes controversy
Fernandes has now scored twice from free-kicks in his last three Premier League matches after also finding the back of the net against Everton.
United have improved at set-pieces and Fernandes has played a big part in that. However, his latest effort has caused plenty of controversy.
Even Christian Eriksen admitted the wall was wrong with the United midfielder joking that it looked “15 metres” away.
"It helps that the wall was about 15 metres back!"
Christian Eriksen on the distance of Arsenal's wall from Bruno Fernandes' free-kick 📏 pic.twitter.com/86ykolHd5j
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) March 9, 2025
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But it should take nothing away from what was a much-improved performance from United and Fernandes.
There are plenty of positives United can take into Thursday’s second-leg Europa League clash against Real Sociedad.