Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard said Myles Lewis-Skelly will “learn” from his early substitution after escaping a red card in the landslide victory over PSV Eindhoven.
Lewis-Skelly escaped a second yellow card for a foul that was far more rash than his initial booking in Arsenal’s Champions League tie against PSV.
Quick-thinking Mikel Arteta substituted the left-back immediately after a frantic ten-minute first half spell in which Lewis-Skelly set up a goal but then narrowly avoided being sent-off.
“Lewis-Skelly took that [substitution] really well,” Odegaard told Amazon Prime. “He knew it was tricky, when you’re on a yellow and a tough challenge there. He took that well and we will help him. He will learn from that as well.”
Lewis-Skelly was spotted smiling as he completed a cool down following the match, with his team-mates showing their support for what could have been a third red card of the season - although one against Wolves was overturned after an appeal.
“I haven’t seen the second action but you are 2-0 up away from home and I didn’t want to risk it. He is very young so we have to protect him,” said Arteta after the victory, which puts Arsenal in pole position to make the quarter-finals where they could face reigning European champions Real Madrid, who beat rivals Atletico Madrid 2-1 last night.
Lewis-Skelly had started the game brightly and on 21 minutes his low cross had set up Ethan Nwaneri who slammed Arsenal’s second goal into the roof of the net.
But minutes later, events took a shaky turn for the 18-year-old North Londoner as he was booked in the 24th minute for what appeared to have been a fairly soft foul on the PSV striker Luuk de Jong.
Lewis-Skelly looked shocked and gesticulated in disbelief after being quickly shown yellow by referee Jesus Gil Manzano.
The booking appeared to have rattled the youngster as he then lunged in much more menacingly in the next passage of pay a minute later. Richard Ledezma had received the ball and was shaping to cross as Lewis-Skelly came steaming in left-footed, leaving the PSV man yelling out as he was felled.
Lewis-Skelly clearly feared the worst as he got to his feet, holding his hands up to the referee as if to appeal for leniency. Fortunately for him, Manzano kept his card in his pocket, and within seconds Arteta was ordering substitute Riccardo Calafiori to get ready to come on. Lewis-Skelly was then substituted after just 35 minutes for the Italian, immediately after the third goal had been scored, allowing Arsenal to remain in firm control in their one-sided tie.
On Amazon Prime’s live coverage, Alan Shearer quickly praised Arteta’s decision-making in substituting Lewis-Skelly. Wayne Rooney also added: “I think it’s really good managing from Mikel Arteta. He’s a young lad and he’s playing against a tricky player so get him off. Obviously at the time they took him off it was 3-0 and it’s easy to take him off but I definitely think Mikel Arteta made the right decision.”
Theo Walcott, meanwhile, said during half-time analysis of the two fouls: “The first one I think it’s one of those that’s a bit soft but I can understand why the referee has given a yellow card. It’s all about the reaction. He’s got to learn his lesson as obviously in the Premier League recently he was sent off.”
Arsenal, he said, had “done the right thing” in substituting him. Daniel Sturridge reflected on Lewis-Skelly’s body language after the second foul, saying “he looked over and thought ‘I could be going here’.”
Second foul worse than the first – Lewis-Skelly should have gone
Really, for that second foul he should have gone. I think the first yellow is harsh, but Jesús Gil Manzano has given it, so if the first one is a caution, then the second one is definitely yellow. I think Lewis-Skelly is very fortunate. For the referee, there is clearly a degree of inconsistency. If he’s cautioning that first one, the second one is a worse offence.
We can say that the referee is some distance away, but he has an assistant there who is able to support the call, either through the flag or talking to him. I would expect in that situation for the assistant referee to communicate that the second incident is worthy of a yellow card.
In fairness, I think Mikel Arteta has done the right thing in bringing him off, because after not getting a second yellow card for that, he is walking a tightrope.
Any form of challenge that Lewis-Skelly makes in the rest of the game, he only has to put one foot wrong and he is off.
I think Arteta has subbed him on the basis of keeping a full team and should be praised for that. When a player is on a yellow card and he is losing a degree of self-control, this is just sensible management.
