Tottenham Hotspur were very fortunate to emerge with a point from today’s north London derby, a match that ended in a 1-1 draw and surrounded by controversy. Arsenal really should have taken all three points from this one, but a couple of crucial calls did not go their way.
Aaron Ramsey opened the scoring in the 16′, with Harry Kane equalizing in 74′ off a penalty kick that was marred by controversy. There is no doubt that Kane was shoved by Arsenal defender Shkodran Mustafi in the box to win the penalty, but Kane was also clearly in an offside position when the free kick came in.
https://twitter.com/gunnerblog/status/1101845108058701824
5 Spurs players offside.
Don’t get me wrong it’s a clear foul by the stupid Shkodran Mustafi but the penalty should never have been given because offside should’ve been called first.
Premier League officials.. ??? pic.twitter.com/yuPDT93IDC
— UberArsenal (@UberAFC) March 2, 2019
So Kane got a gift from both the official and his opponent. Mustafi is a good defender, but he’s consistently prone to horrifying gaffes such as this. It’s a common occurrence, which some Arsenal fans refer to as “Mustafi Madness,” and it’s led to many Gooners wanting him off the squad ASAP.
Quoting Pain in the Arsenal on the Fan Sided network:
this, sadly, is the norm for the German. In fact, this performance was the ideal definition of what he has been in north London. If you were to overlook his bumbling barge of Kane, then Mustafi actually played very well. Out of position, he was aggressive, composed, consistent and aware.
But you cannot view this performance without looking at the key moment, and that is how it has been for Mustafi.
https://twitter.com/mikesanz19/status/1101846776577953792
Mustafi is a top trending term (as are several other north London derby related terms) on Twitter right now, and it’s mostly due to Gunner supporters slamming him for his bone-headed mistake.
Here are a couple more examples of some of the colorful Twitter postings being made:
Mustafi would plead his innocence if he was caught standing in a bank vault wearing a ski mask and putting money into duffel bags. #nld
— Mattias Karén (@MattiasKaren) March 2, 2019
If Mustafi played in South America the cartel would have killed his entire family by now
— John Gotti (@JCourier1) March 2, 2019
Poor tackle from Mustafi for the penalty, but still not even close to being the worse thing he's done in an Arsenal shirt. pic.twitter.com/jSGfjVk95C
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) March 2, 2019
The second controversial call to go against Arsenal was Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang‘s 90′ spot kick getting saved by Hugo Lloris and preventing a potential game-winner.
The miss was aided by Jan Vertonghen obviously encroaching into the box when the kick was taken and the fact that he was able to clear the rebound of the kick conveys just how far in to the box he was.
Had VAR been available…well, had VAR been at the ready for the Kane call as well…hey, it is what is is.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, regularly appears as a guest pundit on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
He also contributes sociopolitical essays to Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to his.