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Newcastle v Arsenal Mikel Arteta hopes the PGMOL dispute is a thing of the past


Newcastle v Arsenal Mikel Arteta hopes the PGMOL dispute is a thing of the past

Mikel Arteta said he couldn't watch Anthony Gordon's controversial goal again after Arsenal's defeat to Newcastle last season but believes his subsequent row with PGMOL did no lasting damage.

Arsenal return to St James' Park on Saturday almost exactly a year after suffering a 1-0 defeat when Gordon's 64th-minute strike sparked an angry reaction from Arteta, who described the incident as “embarrassing” and a disgrace , as the goal survived three different video referee checks.

Arteta was subsequently charged with inappropriate behavior by the Football Association but was later cleared by an independent panel.

Asked if the whole episode had any lasting consequences, Arteta said: “No, hopefully we've got it behind us. We talked about it in detail and it's settled. It's a year. A year in football is a long, long time.”

“Every club has its history and its games, situations and comments. It’s part of the game and we have to understand it for what it is.”

“Every decision I make will be criticized, or no one will understand it, or they will understand and praise it. There will always be opinions about our work, that’s normal.”

Asked if he had seen Gordon's goal in the build-up to Saturday's game, Arteta replied: “I didn't stop at that sequence! I didn't want to go through that. It's already on my hard drive, so I didn't do it. I want to go through this again.

Arteta confirmed Martin Ødegaard is still out with an ankle injury, Ben White is doubtful with a “joint complaint”, but Gabriel Magalhães is expected to recover from a knee problem.

“We have a training session today,” Arteta added. “If he (Gabriel) can do this, he will be available. He hasn’t completed any training sessions yet, but if he can do it today, he will be available in the squad.”

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