Mikel Arteta has demanded answers from the PGMOL, the Premier League’s official referee body, on the back of Arsenal’s fourth red card in six games.
The Gunners were able to hold on for the final 20 minutes at Wolves without Martinelli to win 1-0 and move into fifth place in the Premier League after top-four rivals Manchester United and Tottenham had dropped points earlier in the week.
Martinelli was sent off for two bookable offences in the same passage of play – shoving Daniel Podence as he took a throw-in and then barging over Chiquinho after Michael Oliver had played the advantage.
The Gunners have had a long-running issue with red cards under Arteta, but with this their fourth in six games, the Arsenal boss suggested he will raise the issue with the Professional Game Match Officials Limited group, which runs refereeing for the Premier League.
“I need an explanation of what happened today. Those discussions will happen soon.”
Although Arteta was bemused by Oliver’s decision, he also made it clear his players need to avoid getting themselves into similar situations.
Asked how he planned to stop his players from being sent off, the Arsenal manager toldBT Sport: “I have run out of ideas.
“To win four matches like that [after a red card] is extremely difficult. We know that and one of the main things we have to stop is that.
“But today, something that I have never seen in my career happened. I’m glad we managed to win the game. I’ve never seen something like it. The rules can say that probably it is possible. But you have to be very, very willing to do that.
“We need to play with 11 players in the final 16 games – that is going to be key to give us the best possible chance for us to win football matches.”
