Arsenal: Gunners keep title hopes alive; Wenger faces FA charge; Boss discusses Sanchez’s penalty

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Arsenal managed to secure a vital three points, thanks to a late winning goal from Alexis Sanchez. Burnley had managed to equalise in stoppage time, but Arsenal kept fighting and secured the win with a last minute penalty, despite being a man down. Granit Xhaka had been sent off moments after the side’s opening goal and that made what should have been a routine victory, somewhat more difficult. It was a hugely important weekend for the Gunners as they moved up to second in the table and are now seen as the main challengers to Chelsea at the top of the division.

It was only yesterday that Arsene Wenger was discussing the importance of beating the mid-table sides and his side obliged, albeit in a very dramatic way. Arsenal could have an opportunity to close that gap to Chelsea over the coming weeks as the Blues face a difficult trip to Liverpool days before Arsene Wenger’s men come to Stamford Bridge. If Chelsea lose both of those matches, Arsenal could move only two points behind the league leaders. That is a big if, but Chelsea have already lost to both sides this season and there is no reason why that can’t be repeated.

Arsene Wenger has apologised for his confrontation with the fourth official after Burnley scored an equaliser from the penalty spot. The Arsenal manager was sent off for his reaction and then he lost his head, before pushing Anthony Taylor. He could now face an FA charge, with a touchline ban possible for the Frenchman.

“I should have shut up – I apologise for not having done that,”

“It was nothing malicious. I should have kept my control, even if it was in a hectic time.”

Although Wenger is generally calm on the touchline, he does have an aggressive side that occasionally comes to the fore. It has been seen in the past as he has clashed with Jose Mourinho and Alan Pardew among others, but that is to be expected. A manager’s job is a stressful one and it can sometimes cause reactions such as these. He should be punished for it and it will be interesting to see if the FA does opt for a touchline ban. Alan Pardew did receive a two-match touchline ban when he pushed an assistant referee during his time as Newcastle manager. I would expect Wenger to face a similar punishment.

The Arsenal manager also discussed Alexis Sanchez and his penalty winner. The Chilean opted to take a panenka penalty, which takes incredible bottle, especially as Arsenal needed the three points to continue their title challenge. It is obvious that he has an elite personality and is capable of doing things on the pitch that the majority of other players can’t do. Although it came off this time, Wenger did say that he thought his player was ‘too cool’.

“He was too cool. He has missed penalties for us, he was in fact, not the first penalty taker today – it was [Olivier] Giroud.

“But he was second. But as long as he scores, you know, we just have to accept and say ‘well done’.”

It is difficult to criticise a player when he scores the winning goal, but it is obvious that Wenger would have preferred if Sanchez hadn’t taken that chance. Some have seen the finish as showing arrogance on Sanchez’s side, but I think it shows his incredible concentration. It would have been easy to over-commit to the penalty and miss the target altogether. However, Sanchez remained cool and produced a world class finish. He is an exceptional talent and has a big role to play as Arsenal attempt to close the gap on Chelsea.

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