FA decide on Gabriel Martinelli punishment after Arsenal star pushed referee

FA decide on Gabriel Martinelli punishment after Arsenal star pushed refereeGabriel Martinelli was cautioned in the closing stages of Arsenal's stunning FA Cup defeat to Southampton after pushing referee Sam Barrott on the armCommentsSportBen Husband Sports News Editor21:56, 05 Apr 2026Updated 21:56, 05 Apr 2026View 2 ImagesSam Barrott booked Gabriel Martinelli for pushing himGabriel Martinelli is set to avoid retrospective action from the Football Association after pushing the referee during Arsenal's shock FA Cup defeat to Southampton.‌The Arsenal forward was cautioned in the closing stages of the 2-1 loss at St Mary’s after pushing Sam Barrott on the arm. The incident occurred in the 94th minute when Martinelli made contact with the referee while trying to quickly take a free kick.‌But with Barrott taking action on-field, the Athletic report he is not set to be punished further by the FA.‌Ex-Premier League referee Mark Halsey slammed the Brazilian’s antics and insisted he should have been shown a straight red card. He said: "Referee Sam Barrott awarded a free-kick to Arsenal, Martinelli comes rushing in and he pushes Sam out of the way.READ MORE: Robin van Persie and Raheem Sterling under pressure as furious Feyenoord fans turnREAD MORE: Arsenal need to prove they've evolved as a sense of deja vu raises serious questions"Now I'm sorry, Gabriel Martinelli showed total disrespect for the match official Sam Barrott in that situation."Although Sam issued a yellow card, for me it's a red card. You just cannot put your hands on a referee, let alone push him out of the way. You've got to look around the country, up and down, Saturday and Sundays where we have local park referees going out and doing their games. What message does that send out to our local park referees?‌"I thought Sam had a good game, he refereed the game well, but I think he let the refereeing community down by not sending off Gabriel Martinelli for pus...