Christian Eriksen, a midfielder for Manchester United, has stated that he saw a critical error made by referee Anthony Taylor before his team’s first goal in their 1-1 tie with Arsenal. Bruno Fernandes’ exquisite free-kick, which sailed past a diving David Raya, gave the Red Devils a goal at halftime despite having to defend for the whole of the first half.
Gary Neville said in his commentary that the Arsenal wall appeared to be a bit far back. When the distance between the wall and the free-kick was measured, it was 11.2 yards rather than the customary ten. Eriksen says he saw it at the time, and United players saw it in the second period while they were defending a similar situation.
Bruno’s free kick measured at 11.2 yards away from the wall, pathetic from Arsenal not trickling forward. FK takers are usually lucky if it’s 10 yards, never mind more! Half a yard further forward and it gets blocked. Enraged at my team just packing their 💼 up for the Prem.… pic.twitter.com/Gt9rgjXokL
— Pythagoras In Boots ⚽️ (@pythaginboots) March 9, 2025
They honestly all need demoting
He starts his steps ahead of the ball, then proceeds to draw the line about another step further away from his 10th and last step
pic.twitter.com/baiAMDdFdt https://t.co/qEX3bRdju6
— CF Comps (@CF_Compss) March 9, 2025
Eriksen Reacts to Taylor’s Yardage Mistake
The Dane stated that he was happy to see how far back the Arsenal wall was
After the game, Eriksen, who is among the best free-kick takers in the Premier League, told Sky Sports that he was pleased to see the Arsenal wall so far back that it gave his captain a better chance of getting the ball up and over the wall while maintaining his effort on target:
It was great because the wall was only 15 meters away. You could see how far back they were even before the kick, so I believe I saw it early. They had the same advantage in the second half, and when Bruno scored, it was clear that we were a little upset with the referee for pushing us back so far. However, we did benefit much from it.
"It helps that the wall was about 15 metres back!"
Christian Eriksen on the distance of Arsenal's wall from Bruno Fernandes' free-kick 📏 pic.twitter.com/86ykolHd5j
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) March 9, 2025
United found themselves defending the similar scenario in the second half, as Eriksen hinted to, but replays revealed that their wall slid forward to narrow the difference. As Martin Odegaard’s kick was taken, they leaped towards the direction of the ball instead of straight up, which allowed Casemiro to deflect the threat.
Arteta Credits Smart Bruno Fernandes For Free-Kick Strike
The Arsenal boss also saw how United benefitted from a wall further back
Arteta acknowledged Bruno Fernandes’ cunning in deceiving the referee about the distance, but he wasn’t eager to stay and speak to the media about his team’s chances of winning the championship for the rest of the season.
“He has been astute and exploited others. Football is that,” Arteta said to Sky Sports. “He’s outsmarted the referee. It’s alright, they gave him permission to do it.
Arsenal may be frustrated that they didn’t do more to stop the goal from happening, especially because they are now the Premier League’s reigning set piece kings.
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