‘They get away with it’ – Keys insists Arsenal escaped key Saliba fouls at Man United
Richard Keys has suggested that Arsenal were lucky to get away with two key decisions against Man United on Sunday (17 August) as they emerged out of Old Trafford with a 1-0 win.
The two sides faced off in front of the Sky Sports cameras on Sunday afternoon as they both hoped to get their Premier League campaign off to a strong start.
Arsenal soon took the lead after just 13 minutes as Altay Bayindir struggled to clear a dangerous corner away and Riccardo Calafiori was given a golden chance to head the ball into an open net at the back post.
Man United then came back into the game and looked the more likely team to score throughout as David Raya kept out efforts from new Red Devils Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo.
Ruben Amorim’s side thought they should have had a penalty late on as Saliba tackled Cunha in the six-yard box, but their claims were waved away and the Gunners held on to come away with a valuable three points at Old Trafford to start the campaign off.
Keys claims no goal for Arsenal and penalty to Man United
The two key moments in the game were each shrouded in controversy, as United players remonstrated after Arsenal’s opener by claiming that goalkeeper Bayindir was fouled by Saliba in the build-up, while the Frenchman’s tackle on Cunha was strong but came to nothing despite the hosts’ protests.
According to beIN SPORTS presenter and broadcaster Richard Keys, via his blog post (18 August), both moments should have gone in United’s favour, as he deemed the Arsenal goal as a foul on the Turkish stopper, and believed that the penalty should have been given to the Red Devils late on, while insisting that the Gunners are allowed to commit fouls by referees too often.
He said: “Weak? Maybe a little bit. Soft? Perhaps. Could’ve done better? Of course. That’s always the case. Few leave a field of play satisfied with what they’ve done. But – Bayindir was fouled. We all know what Arsenal do at set-pieces. They push boundaries all the time. Sometimes they get away with it – on other occasions they don’t. They did yesterday [Sunday].”
He went on: “Now I’ll explain why Saliba should’ve been penalised. I have no problem with him standing where he did. He’s entitled to do that, but the moment he blocks the keeper by turning his back to him and then backing into him – that’s a foul. Take another look at where Bayindir ends up. He’s in the back of the net with the ball. Saliba sent him there.
“Arsenal got away with another one when [Saliba] was all over Cunha in the box. He got nowhere near the ball when he challenged Cunha. He caught his left foot and subsequently dragged him to the ground. I don’t blame Simon Hooper for not seeing that one but VAR should’ve picked it up like we did at beIN SPORTS.”
Man United should buy a new goalkeeper
Football Insider verdict
It is clear that the Red Devils will feel hard done by after their season-opener, but while the penalty claims were fair and the decision could have gone either way, the fact they were losing and desperately needed to score at that point was effectively solely down to Bayindir’s weak attempt at a punch away.
United’s goalkeeping woes were clear for all to see last season, as first-choice stopper Andre Onana struggled to consistently impress in-between the sticks at Old Trafford, while back-up Bayindir was unable to grasp the opportunities handed to him to become number one.
| Player | Appearances | Goals conceded | Clean sheets |
| Onana | 101 | 148 | 24 |
| Bayindir | 12 | 21 | 3 |
Bayindir has been mooted as “likely” to leave Man United after he kept just three clean sheets and conceded 18 goals in 10 appearances last term, yet Onana’s recent injury has meant Amorim has had to put his trust in him at the start of the new campaign.
Ruben Amorim is unsure if the Red Devils will bring in a new stopper, but regardless of any potential foul by Saliba, Bayindir’s effort at getting the ball away from danger against Arsenal was poor, and it further highlighted United’s need to sign a new keeper as soon as possible to be first-choice ahead of him and the Cameroonian international.