‘It’s a War And Provocation is…’: Gabriel Reacts After Heated Exchange With Haaland – News18

From a red card to a late equaliser, the Premier League fixture between Manchester City and Arsenal had it all. The thrilling game, termed by many as the potential title decider, ended up with a scoreline that read 2-2.

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The match might have ended in a stalemate but the fixture was an absolute belter. There was plenty of on-field drama including breathtaking duels and confrontations.

One such face-off was between Arsenal defender Gabriel and Manchester City striker Erling Haaland. Gabriel and Haaland fought each other tooth and nail throughout the 90 minutes and the duo often got involved in heated exchanges.

The situation went out of control when Haaland was spotted throwing the ball at the back of Gabriel’s head after John Stones secured a late equaliser for the reigning Premier League champions.

The incident resulted in an altercation with match referee Michael Oliver intervening to control the situation.

Following the Premier League match, Gabriel talked to the media about this. He termed the incident as “normal in football”.

“It’s a battle, a war and provocation is normal in football. Now it’s over and we’re waiting for them at our house,” Gabriel was quoted as saying in media reports.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, on the other hand, appeared to be unhappy with the marching orders given to Leandro Trossard during the game.

“Right now our emotions are a bit mixed because of everything that’s happened, but we played in a very complicated context,” the Spaniard told Telemundo Deportes.

“Playing here against this opponent is already very complicated. To play 55 minutes against this opponent with 10 men is a very difficult task, but I’m very proud of the players. If the players see other things in the first half and no action is taken, obviously the player can’t react in less than a second which is how long it takes for the action of the whistle when you have it behind you,” he added.

Haaland had scored the opening goal of the game to give 1-0 lead for Manchester City in the ninth minute. Riccardo Calafiori then struck the equaliser for the Gunners.

Gabriel then gave the visitors 2-1 lead late in the first half.

However, Arsenal’s chances of claiming the full three points at the Etihad Stadium were ruined in the dying minutes of the action-packed Premier League match. Stones found the back of the net to salvage a point for the Pep Guardiola-coached side.