Newcastle United striker Nick Woltemade accused Arsenal centre back Gabriel of elbowing him in the face during Sunday’s fractious encounter, and used the Brazilian’s on-pitch apology as an admission of guilt after an incident which he deemed “not right.”
The two towering figures would prove to be protagonists in a heated 2–1 win for the visitors. Woltemade gave Newcastle a first-half lead against the run of play, out-jumping Gabriel to nod in from a corner, before Arsenal mounted a late comeback. Mikel Merino headed the Gunners level in the 84th minute while none other than Gabriel rose to prod a dramatic stoppage-time winner past Nick Pope.
However, Woltemade questioned whether Gabriel should have even been on the pitch by then.
“After the goal there was a situation I felt his elbow in my face. I’m two metres [tall], so his arm has to be really high,” the German forward huffed to Sky Sports. “I don’t know, I just said it to the referee that I felt something in the face and I think it’s not right to feel something in the face.”
The pair clashed immediately after the restart following Woltemade’s opener. Gabriel had appealed for a non-existent foul which the referee rightly ignored and, perhaps with a sense of injustice inspired by an overturned Arsenal penalty earlier in the half, the defender took his frustrations out on Woltemade.
