Arsenal put together William Saliba red card appeal video | OneFootball

Arsenal put together a video package for an appeal against William Saliba’s red card before deciding not to submit it, according to a report.

BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND: William Saliba of Arsenal runs with the ball whilst under pressure from Evanilson of AFC Bournemouth (obscured) during the Premier League match between AFC Bournemouth and Arsenal FC at Vitality Stadium on October 19, 2024. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

Arsenal appeared to go back and forth on the possibility of an appeal against William Saliba’s Bournemouth red card, before ultimately deciding not to submit one.

Initially, Mikel Arteta suggested Arsenal wouldn’t be appealing, telling the media: “The decision has been made, so that’s it.”

Arteta then gave a more ambiguous update early this week, saying: “I leave that more to the club to understand the circumstances. They will have to decide it.”

BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND: Match Referee, Robert Jones shows a yellow card to William Saliba, which is later upgraded to a red card on review, during the Premier League match between AFC Bournemouth and Arsenal FC at Vitality Stadium on October 19, 2024. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

In the end, the club made the decision not to appeal, but the call was clearly not finalised for a few days.

Sami Mokbel reports for the Daily Mail that Arsenal analysts put together a video montage of similar decisions that weren’t deemed red-card offences in preparation for an appeal. But they decided against submitting it.

Sources reportedly claim that appealing the red card was never a realistic consideration given the likelihood of failure. The analysts were evidently just being prepared for all possibilities.

BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND: Match Referee, Robert Jones interacts with Gabriel of Arsenal and teammates after showing a red card to their teammate, William Saliba (not pictured) during the Premier League match between AFC Bournemouth and Arsenal FC at Vitality Stadium on October 19, 2024. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

With Arsenal opting not to appeal, Saliba will be suspended for one match against Liverpool this weekend.

The defender was able to play against Shakhtar Donetsk, as suspensions don’t carry over into European competitions. He’ll now serve a one-match ban, given his red card was for denying a goalscoring opportunity.

Straight red cards often carry longer bans of two or three games, in cases of dissent or violent conduct. But for this kind of offence, a one-game absence is all that’s required.