In their 3-0 victory against Bournemouth, Kai Havertz maintained that Arsenal earned the contentious penalty he was awarded.
Referee David Coote promptly pointed to the spot after Havertz was hauled down in the box by Bournemouth goalkeeper Mark Travers.
A VAR check verified that Coote’s call was valid.
On the stroke of halftime, Bukayo Saka scored from the penalty spot to give Arsenal the lead. Goals in the second half from Leandro Trossard and Declan Rice completed the 3-0 victory, moving Mikel Arteta’s team four points clear of the leaders.
The penalty call, nevertheless, was contentious; among those who disagreed with its award was Ian Wright, a legend of the Gunners. Havertz, however, said to TNT Sports when questioned about the incident during the game: “I haven’t seen the replay, but I think he touches me.”
“I dropped down because I felt contact in that scenario. It’s a penalty for me. I believe the goalie knew too because I told him, “You touched me.” You can deliver it for certainty even though it might not be entirely obvious.”
Havertz concluded by saying, “It was a tough game; we had lots of chances, especially in the first half.” It was difficult in the second half when we failed to score them.
They performed fairly well, and they have a strong squad. We are satisfied with the three goals and three points in the end. Right now, I just like being on the pitch. I have a ton of talented players in my corner. I truly love playing the position of No. 9, so it’s just enjoyable.
We’re going to give it our all in the two games that remain. We’re hoping to have fun and win the last two games. After that, we’ll see our destination.”
