Man City handed double blow after Gabriel avoids Arsenal red card

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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was not happy that Gabriel stayed on the pitch after headbutting Erling Haaland

Manchester City have lost out twice as a result of Gabriel avoiding a red card for headbutting Erling Haaland. The Arsenal defender came face-to-face with the Norwegian striker and then pushed his head forward into his opponent but did not receive the sending off that everybody expected.

Instead, referee Anthony Taylor booked both players and the decision was justified by the Premier League match centre 'with the action from Gabriel deemed not to be excessively aggressive or violent'. Players will be relieved to know that headbutts are now acceptable as long as they aren't too aggressive - even if they can't pull hair.

The decision didn't change the result in the sense that City are already leading, and it isn't certain that the Blues would have gone on to score again - which could be important if the title comes down to goal difference - with an Arsenal centre-back off the pitch. City were attempting to slow the game down and see out the win at this point, although it may have made for a more comfortable ending with Arsenal having one less man to push forward with to try and earn a draw.

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Nevertheless, the controversial decision is to Arsenal's benefit that they will not lose one of their key players this season for the three games that a red card for violent conduct would have brought. City would feel more confident about their rivals dropping points in matches against Newcastle, Fulham and West Ham if they were to be without their best defender.

To make matters worse, Pep Guardiola was also booked after reacting strongly to the incident. City's manager shouted at the fourth official demanding to know why a red card had not been given and was booked for his protests.

That is Guardiola's seventh yellow card of the season, and having already served two bans for cumulative yellow cards he is now just two away from the next threshold of nine yellows that would bring a three-match ban. This applies to both Premier League and FA Cup fixtures, meaning any booking at Wembley this weekend against Southampton would also move him closer to a suspension.

Bernardo Silva, however, is now free from the risk of suspension. City's captain has been walking a tightrope in the last two games where one yellow card would have brought a two-game ban as a result of it being his tenth in 32 league games, but he is now free to play for the rest of the campaign.