“Very bad officiating” – Gabriel Jesus criticises referee and rubbishes complaints over Garnacho offside goal

Gabriel Jesus accuses the referee of fouling him in the build-up to Alejandro Garnacho’s offside goal.

 Gabriel Jesus on VAR

Gabriel Jesus claims that referee Anthony Taylor made some ‘poor choices’ in Arsenal’s win over Manchester United, and he dismisses complaints over Alejandro Garnacho’s late goal being disallowed.

The Gunners kept their unbeaten start to the new Premier League season going with a 3-1 victory at the Emirates on Sunday, though the outcome was far from routine.

Despite showing little intent for much of the game, a quick counter-attack in the 27th minute unleashed Marcus Rashford, who thundered a shot into the far corner.

Martin Odegaard responded immediately after the break, and the game swiftly devolved into a cagey affair until substitute Alejandro Garnacho sprinted through on goal and tapped past Aaron Ramsdale in the 89th minute.

The Red Devils appeared to have won all three points, but after a lengthy VAR review, the goal was ruled out for a very marginal offside ruling.

Arsenal raced forward, taking the lead at the finish through Declan Rice’s 96th-minute deflected shot before Jesus added some gloss to the scoreline in the 101st minute.

Ten Hag was furious with the officials after the game, claiming the VAR had used the ‘wrong angle’ to draw the lines for Garnacho’s offside goal. Ten Hag also felt his team should have been granted a penalty and a free-kick on Jonny Evans when Rice scored.

But, despite Ten Hag’s protests, Jesus believes it was Arsenal, who saw a penalty shockingly overturned, who was on the wrong side of the officials and felt Garnacho’s effort should not have stood regardless of offside.

‘The referee made some bad decisions,’ the Brazilian told reporters after the game. ‘Even with their [disallowed] goal, it could have been a foul on me, but happily it was offside,’ he says.

Jesus, who underwent surgery in pre-season, was happy to return to play and score, continuing: ‘I’m feeling fine. It’s difficult to return to an injury after a vacation. It was unfortunate that I began to feel my knee again.

‘You go back after pre-season, but you’re in pain. I took the decision to get surgery as soon as feasible in order to recover stronger. It was difficult, but I’m finally back. It’s critical to reestablish the rhythm. So, I’m back, feeling fantastic, and joyful.

‘At the conclusion of last season, I was absolutely fine,’ she says. Then I went on vacation and didn’t feel anything. Nothing had changed when I returned in the first week. Following that, I began to feel it.

‘And for me, it was [a question of], ‘If I’m not 100 percent, I won’t be myself’. I kept playing and training while attempting. I was feeling it a little, but it was nothing to me. But then I couldn’t run or move, so I chose to have surgery — and that was the end of it.

‘The first day is s**t when you find out, but the next day you realize you have to keep going, battling, and smiling. God has given me a life, and God has allowed me to wake up every morning, therefore I must be grateful. I’m fortunate. I can stroll, stand here, and grin. So there’s nothing to be upset about. Just keep battling and believing in God.’