Erling Haaland will face no retrospective action for throwing the ball at the head of Arsenal defender Gabriel after Manchester City’s late equaliser on Sunday.
John Stones scored in the 98th minute at the Etihad Stadium to earn the reigning champions a last-gasp 2-2 draw that keeps them ahead of title rivals Arsenal at the top of the Premier League table.
In the celebrations after Stones’ goal, Haaland retrieved the ball from the net and threw it at the back of centre-back Gabriel’s head.
The incident was looked at by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) at the time, but it was deemed not to be an act of violent conduct and as such not a clear and obvious error. VAR cannot intervene for possible yellow cards.
Haaland will also face no retrospective punishment from the Football Association (FA), meaning he is available for City’s next game on Tuesday night at home to Championship side Watford in the Carabao Cup third round.
Haaland was involved in a heated end to the game against Arsenal, colliding with Thomas Partey shortly after the restart following Stones’ goal.
The striker was involved in a confrontation with Gabriel and then Arsenal teenager Myles Lewis-Skelly, who was making his senior debut off the bench at the Etihad.
Haaland was also caught exchanging words with Mikel Arteta at the full-time whistle, telling the Arsenal boss to “stay humble”.
Like Haaland, neither club will face any retrospective action for the heated scenes witnessed at the end of Sunday’s game.
