Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard has warned teammate Takehiro Tomiyasu and the rest of the squad of the need to "adapt" to the new refereeing guidelines after the Japan international's needless red card against Crystal Palace.
Tomiyasu was sent off for two bookable offences during the narrow 1-0 win for the Gunners on Monday evening, with his first yellow card coming due to the full-back taking too much time over a throw-in.
The booking was a direct result of the new refereeing directives for the 2023/24 season which are aimed at curtailing time wasting in the Premier League and have led to drastic increases in added time at the end of halves.
Speaking to the press after the win, Arsenal captain Odegaard admitted that Tomiyasu and the rest of the squad need to adapt to the new regulations.
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"I don’t know if it’s difficult but it’s new rules so we have to adapt," Odegaard said of Tomiyasu's dismissal. "The first yellow card was harsh, I don’t think he [Tomiyasu] was trying to take a lot of time, he just didn’t have anyone to play to. It’s a bit tricky but we have to adapt.
"That’s the reality, we can’t do anything else. It’s easier to get yellow cards now so you have to be careful and that goes for me as well. It’s something to have in mind but I don’t think we should think too much about the rules. We should stay focused on the game."
Odegaard also took the time to discuss the importance of the win over Palace and the strong start that his side have made to the 2023/24 Premier League season.
"It’s crucial," he continued. "The start of the season is always tricky, it takes a bit of time before everyone finds their rhythm and their top form. It’s crucial to still get the three points and build on it from there.
"I’m very happy to win and I’m sure we’ll get better and better with every game. It was difficult, we had to dig deep and fight for it. When you come here you have to be able to suffer and we knew that before the game. We did that brilliantly and we deserved the three points."
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On this edition of The Chronicles of a Gooner, part of the 90min podcast network, Harry Symeou looks back at Arsenal's win over Crystal Palace, focusing on the system, Declan Rice's performance, Tomiyasu's red card, Nketiah and more!
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This article was originally published on 90min as Martin Odegaard sends Takehiro Tomuyasu warning after Crystal Palace red card.
