Mikel Arteta 'got it wrong' with Arsenal star who cost them vs Man City – and it’s not Kepa

Mikel Arteta has been told he made a mistake not substituting one Arsenal star in the Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester City

Micah Richards has revealed Mikel Arteta's Piero Hincapie decision cost Arsenal the Carabao Cup. The Gunners No.2 goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga has faced huge criticism for his error that led to Manchester City's first goal, but Micah Richards believes that not taking Hincapie off after he picked up an early yellow card was the real problem.

He said on the Rest is Football podcast: "You've had [Erling] Haaland and [Antoine] Semenyo playing up front, then Semenyo didn't play and Haaland was up front and he gets his goal [vs Real Madrid].

"Then you had Semenyo wide on the right up against Hincapie, [and] it was a difficult day for him. Once he got that yellow card, and I've been in that position guys, once you have that as a defender, it takes away not all your attributes... But for Hincapie, he reads the game well, he's nice and aggressive, he gets out to people quickly.

"For the goal, if he hadn't have been on a yellow card, he would have gone out to the ball but because he's thinking 'I can't make that challenge, I can't be aggressive', and that's where I think Arteta got it wrong in the game when you've got left-backs on the bench, you have to use them.

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"I know he likes Hincapie and he has been brilliant for Arsenal this season but in that moment, I think that was the difference. Yes, we can talk about Kepa and he had an absolute howler by his standards and he has played really well in the cups, however I think that could have made a change in that moment because City were dominating.

"In the second half, when Semenyo went against Hincapie, he beat him the first time he went up against him and that was a sign of things to come.

"As a manager, you've got [Myles] Lewis-Skelly and [Riccardo] Calafiori on the bench, just make the decision early and that could have been the difference."

The latter did eventually come on for Hincapie in the 65th minute and had a bright cameo, but the damage had already been done with Pep Guardiola's going on to win the first domestic trophy of the season.

Arsenal are still fighting for three pieces of silverware however, with their first game back from the March international break an FA Cup quarter-final away at Southampton.

Despite his mistake on the big stage, Kepa could start in between the sticks having played in all of the previous rounds but Jamie Redknapp certainly appears of the belief that David Raya should be starting in the bigger games from now on, regardless of competition.

He said on Sky Sports: "I know people will say it’s sentiment and he played in the earlier rounds, but Kepa is not as good as Raya. That’s why he is the number two.

"So why, in a major cup final when you’re trying to get across the line and you’ve not won a trophy in so long, do you decide to play him? You have to take responsibility for that.

"That is a monumental error. He’s not a bad goalkeeper – he isn’t not as good as Raya. It has come back and backfired big time. That’s not me being wise after the event, I said it before the game."