Sam Allardyce hits out at Bukayo Saka and bluntly tells him to ‘shut up’

Arsenal have experienced several unfavourable refereeing decisions in recent seasons.

On Sunday, at St James’ Park, VAR chose not to award a penalty when Nick Pope fouled Viktor Gyokeres inside the box during the game.

The decision was unpopular with Arsenal fans, and both Arteta and Saka spoke out against it.

Saka went further by saying Arsenal tend to be on the wrong end of these types of decisions.

“Things like this, these little things, always go against us,” the No.7 said afterwards.

In response, former Premier League manager Allardyce told the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast that Saka should focus less on complaints and more on results.

“They don’t need to whinge with the talent they’ve got. Shut up! Get on with it!

“When you’ve got a squad at the size you’ve got and what you can achieve with that squad, don’t make excuses. Keep quiet and carry on, and build from within. The mentality comes from within.

“The strong mentality comes from within that says: ‘No matter what you give us, we will cope with it and still win.’ And if you do that, that’s why you win the league.”

Sam Allardyce misses the point Bukayo Saka was trying to make

We are at a point now where speaking out about some topics is often seen as just moaning or making excuses.

Saka was trying to highlight an issue, not look for sympathy.

He pointed out that calls like these seem to go against Arsenal more often than not, and there is history to back that up – like the red cards for Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard last season.

Saka was not just having a go for the sake of it. He was pointing out something that needs to change, hoping officials might start being more consistent.

But when people in football circles dismiss those comments as whining, it does not help push anything forward. That is part of why refereeing standards have not improved much over the years.