By Keith Hackett

10th Jan, 2022 | 6:00pm

Ex-Premier League referee unhappy at Arsenal injustice after controversial White footage analysed

Arsenal should have been awarded a penalty in their 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest yesterday (9 January), according to Keith Hackett.

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the ex-Fifa and Premier League referee claimed the referee should have pointed to the spot after a challenge on Ben White from an Arsenal corner.

As shown on the BBC’s highlights show, White’s shirt was pulled back by Joe Worral before the defender fell to the ground.

It happened as he tried to get on the end of a Bukayo Saka cross after a well-worked corner routine.

There was no VAR in operation at the City Ground so nothing could be done after Craig Pawson waved away the appeals.

Instead, the ball trickled out for another corner as Keinan Davis blocked Saka’s cross.

“Referees have got to start punishing in a consistent manner the holding, pulling and impeding that is taking place in the penalty area that creates an unfairness,” Hackett said after analysing the footage with Football Insider correspondent Connor Whitley.

“We saw it in this instance but we now seemed to have appeared to accept this from a refereeing point of view and a playing point of view that this is Ok. It’s not, these are offences that need to be punished.”

Forest won the cup tie with a late Lewis Grabban goal as the visitors were unable to take advantage as they dominated possession.

The Championship side now travel to holders and local rivals Leicester City in the fourth round next month.

In other news, an insider has revealed Arsenal will ‘suffer massively’ as Tottenham are set to ‘take advantage’ of a ‘big blow’.