Football
Henry reacts to Chelsea penalty against Arsenal
By Boluwatife Ezekiel Olaleye
Arsenal legend, Thierry Henry insists Hector Bellerin’s foul on Eden Hazard was a deserved Chelsea penalty in the 2-2 draw between Arsenal and the Blues on Wednesday night.
The Gunners full-back clipped Hazard’s foot in the area, just minutes after Jack Wilshere had given the Gunners the lead.
The Belgian slotted the ball home from 12 yards and Henry believes referee Anthony Taylor was right to point to the spot.
Henry told Sky Sports after the match: ‘He doesn’t touch the ball, he connects with him, it’s a penalty.’
However, Gary Neville did not agree, he told Sky Sports: ‘That’s not a penalty. I don’t think it is.
‘It’s a naive kick and Hazard is always going to go down.
‘It’s soft but he certainly doesn’t catch the shin that he’s holding.’
Meanwhile, Bellerin and Hazard had differing views on the penalty which got Chelsea back into the game.
When asked for their thoughts on the penalty award, Bellerin told Sky Sports Main Event: ‘He’s always very quick in the box. I saw the ball in the air and I tried to challenge for it.
‘We both went for the ball at the same time and the referee thought it was a penalty, so we’ll have to see the replay.’
In response, Hazard joked: ‘We don’t need a replay, yes it’s a penalty.’
Bellerin was pleased to earn his side a point, adding: ‘It was great. I haven’t scored in a while so it was great to do it for our comeback. I’m happy with the goal but also happy with the reaction at the end of the game.’
‘It’s non-stop football. We know whenever we play them it’s always a hard game, there’s always a lot of entertainment, always really hard, we work hard all week. It was a great reaction towards the end.’
Hazard said: ‘It was 50-50. Both teams played a really good game. Maybe we should have scored more goals, we missed a lot of chances, but at the end I think a draw was a good result for both teams. We are happy.’