Manchester City's Erling Haaland believes Arsenal's Gabriel should have been ejected from the game for attempting to headbutt him during City's 2-1 victory over the Gunners. The incident occurred when Haaland outmuscled Gabriel to score the winning goal, leading to a confrontation between the two players. Although Gabriel was only given a yellow card, Haaland thinks it would have been a different story if he had reacted differently to the challenge.
'I think it's a red card,' Haaland said in a post-match interview. 'Most people agree with me.
If I had gone down like any other player, it would have been a red card. It's not something I would do, my father taught me to stay on my feet.' Former referee Mike Dean also suggested that Gabriel was fortunate to avoid a stricter punishment.
Haaland's winner has brought City within three points of the league leaders, with a game in hand. City can return to the top of the table for the first time since August if they beat Burnley on Wednesday.