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Many Arsenal supporters have taken to social media to vent their frustrations after Leandro Trossard was shown a second yellow card for kicking the ball away, while Manchester City’s Jeremy Doku escaped any punishment for a seemingly similar action.
During the first half, Doku was seen nudging the ball away as Arsenal prepared to take a free kick, but he was not penalized for it. This raised a lot of questions among Arsenal fans: why did Doku avoid a booking, while Trossard was sent off during the dramatic 2-2 draw between the two sides? Let’s break down the incident to understand what happened.
Referee Michael Oliver’s decision not to penalize Doku becomes clearer when we look at the context of both situations in detail.
As Arsenal’s players and fans protested Doku’s actions, Oliver pointed to where the ball had ended up, explaining that Doku had simply moved the ball to the spot where the foul had occurred, not kicked it away to delay the game. In fact, his action likely helped speed up play rather than slow it down.
On the other hand, Trossard intentionally kicked the ball far from the location where Manchester City had been awarded a free kick, well after the whistle had been blown. This clear act of time-wasting forced Oliver to issue Trossard a second yellow card, resulting in his sending off just before halftime.