McManaman Tears Into Simeone's "Absolutely Awful" Conduct as Arsenal's Penalty Drama Rages

Steve McManaman didn't hold back in his fury at Diego Simeone following Arsenal's 1-1 stalemate with Atletico Madrid on Wednesday, unleashing a scathing assessment of the Spanish boss's conduct during a controversial evening in the Spanish capital.

The match itself was defined by spot-kick drama. Viktor Gyokeres handed Arsenal the lead from the penalty spot after Dávid Hancko bundled him over in the box, only for Julian Alvarez to level matters from twelve yards following Ben White's handball.

The real flashpoint came late on when referee Danny Makkelie initially pointed to the spot for another Arsenal penalty after a Hancko challenge on Eberechi Eze, before reversing his decision following a consultation with his pitch-side monitor.

McManaman's ire was directed squarely at both the VAR system and Simeone's behaviour around it. Speaking on TNT Sports, he was withering in his criticism: "I absolutely hate it – hate, hate, hate it. It spoils the game."

The former Liverpool winger then turned his attention to the Atletico boss. "I look at the behaviour of Diego Simeone and his assistants when the referee was trying to come over to the monitor – it was atrocious. The constant haranguing of the fourth official," McManaman said.

He continued: "Once he gives it and there's contact, it's not a clear and obvious error, he shouldn't go back to re-ref it again. It baffles me but I thought he had an awful game."

McManaman suggested Simeone would be demanding a penalty if the situation were reversed. "If that happened in the opposite box, Simeone would be going apoplectic for a penalty, and his behaviour is awful, honestly it's awful," he added.

His assessment was damning: "We could see what was going on and his behaviour and his No 2 was terrible, absolutely awful. That's why people don't like the dark arts and Atletico Madrid."

Former Arsenal defender Martin Keown echoed McManaman's frustrations, particularly over the VAR intervention. "I simply don't think it was clear and obvious. The referee should be able to referee the game. The VAR has got too involved. It is not what we wanted with VAR, it's not part of the protocol really," Keown explained.

Keown was equally critical of Simeone's sideline antics and their apparent influence on the officials. "Simeone though, his actions on the sidelines… the drama that he creates and the scenes around it… the referee in the end I thought buckled under the pressure, went to the screen and didn't stand by his decision. I don't think he should have even been made to go to the screen," he said.

The former defender suggested there was something systemic at play. "You need to keep your decorum after a game, and I don't want to go too far with it, but something was very wrong there tonight. He orchestrates the crowd here but he orchestrates the officials too. He creates a drama."

Steven Gerrard, however, wasn't having Keown's assessment, interjecting with a pointed challenge. "Arteta does that as well," the former Liverpool captain observed.

Keown conceded the point but with a crucial caveat: "Not with the same success of this man, he is a master."