Declan Rice escapes red card after controversial incident against Brighton

Declan Rice narrowly avoided a red card after appearing to kick out at Malick Yalcouye during Arsenal's 3-0 loss to Brighton & Hove Albion.

Footage from the match seems to show him striking out at his opponent off the ball just before referee Darren England signalled the end of the game.

Rice, 27, received a yellow card in the seventh minute of added time for what was considered unsportsmanlike behaviour.

Of the five bookings issued during the match, only one was for a different offence.

There are similarities between Rice's incident and the circumstances that led to Phil Foden being sent off in the Manchester derby the previous weekend.

The most controversial moment of the match came when Rice appeared to lash out in an off-the-ball altercation.

The two players had been engaged in a harmless tussle, but as Yalcouye moved past Rice, the England international intentionally kicked the Brighton player. @ZakLFC7 posted on X: "How's this any different to Foden then?" @cam_nufc stated: "It should be a red card for violent conduct, three-match ban, and he walks away with a yellow." @cxllumlfc100 commented: "Might not be harmful, but he's literally got angry and kicked out at someone. It's a textbook red card." @AlekRavn remarked: "How on earth does Declan Rice not get a red card here? Phil Foden got a red last weekend for the same thing? Where are the referees for laughs in the Premier League? Arsenal massive gift again, again, again." Had Rice been sent off, the midfielder would have faced a three-match ban in the Premier League, starting with a home match against Leeds United. After that, the Gunners would have travelled to Nottingham Forest before hosting Everton at the Emirates Stadium for what would have been the final game of his suspension.

Instead, Rice will remain available for selection.

This is one less concern for manager Mikel Arteta, though the Spanish coach will still have nearly a month to reflect on this defeat before Arsenal returns to action.

After the match, Arteta commented: "A really disappointing result and performance. Brighton were another gear up from us. We were extremely poor technically and not respecting the game. Credit to Brighton. They went up another gear. It's a big lesson to learn. It doesn't take away from what the team has done the last few weeks. But now we have to make sure we learn the lesson because this can happen again."

Source: Daily Mirror