Mikel Arteta, Arsenal's manager, spoke candidly in frustration after his team managed only a draw away at Nottingham Forest in the latest English Premier League match.
On 18 Jan 2026 GMT+7, Mikel Arteta, manager of the "Gunners" Arsenal, admitted being extremely frustrated with the referee and VAR after his team was denied a penalty in the Premier League game that ended 0-0 against Nottingham Forest last night. He also criticized his players for failing to convert their chances.
In that match, Arsenal nearly earned a penalty late in the game at the 80th minute when Ola Aina tried to clear the ball, which appeared to strike his arm before going out of play. However, after VAR review, no penalty was awarded to Arsenal.
Arteta said, “Of course, we wanted to win this match. We knew it would be a tough and closely contested game given their style of play. We created four big chances and should have received a clear penalty, but we still couldn’t secure the win in this game.”
“I have watched the replay, and I believe it was a very clear penalty. So I really don’t understand why we were not given a penalty in that situation.”
“However, we should have performed better. But this is what happens to every team across the league. We need to improve and do better, especially when you create as many as four clear chances. You have to convert those into goals.”
“You have to be decisive. We did create those opportunities but credit must be given to them as well because they were very well organized and cleverly disrupted our momentum constantly, which we were aware of.”
“We kept trying for a goal until the very end. I don’t think we lost a shooting opportunity to the opponents even once. But football is decided by these small details, and today we just couldn’t find a way to win.”
As a result of the draw, Arsenal remain top of the table with 50 points, missing the chance to extend their lead over second-place Manchester City, who have 43 points, which is a disappointing outcome.