Havertz awkwardly made to watch controversial Arsenal penalty

ARSENAL star Kai Havertz was awkwardly made to watch the controversial penalty he won against Bournemouth live on TV.

Cherries boss Andoni Iraola accused Havertz of diving in the Gunners’ 3-0 win on Saturday.

“I’m really enjoying it on the pitch right now”

“I’m so glad I’m with Arsenal”

Bournemouth goalie Mark Travers made contact with the German as he ran through on goal just before half-time.

Havertz fell to the ground and was immediately awarded a penalty.

But viewers were quick to accuse Havertz of leaving his trailing foot in and playing for the contact.

Bukayo Saka put away the resulting spot-kick as Arsenal cemented the win with further goals from Leandro Trossard and Declan Rice.

But Iraola was left fuming at full-time as he insisted that Havertz had suckered the referee.

He said: “The refereeing decisions I don’t agree with.

“For me, Kai Havertz is the one trying to find the contact (that isn’t there). At the last moment he finds the contact and he’s not going to goal to score a goal.

“I think with the VAR, probably if you asked the person on the VAR they’d say, ‘It’s not a penalty’. Probably they are thinking, ‘There is contact, so I can’t overturn it’.”

As he gave a post-match interview to TNT Sports, Havertz was asked to comment on the penalty incident.

And as he declared he had not seen the replay, slow-motion footage of the moment appeared on the screen in front of him.

Havertz said: “I haven’t seen the replay… but I think he touches me.”

As the replay was shown on screen, pundit Joe Cole commented: “You see it closely from this angle, he commits and there, the contact, I think it’s a pen.

 “You’re a clever player, he’s left himself exposed.”

Havertz added: “I felt the contact and went down, that’s why. For me it’s a penalty and I said to the goalie as well ‘you touched me’.

 “I think he understood on the pitch as well so maybe it’s not that clear but I think you can give it for sure.”

Fans appeared to agree with Iraola’s verdict that it was a dive.

One said: “Glad he managed to stay on his feet for the whole of the interview.”

Another declared: “Dangled and waited.” — Sun.