Declan Rice risks UEFA punishment for his comments on the referee after Arsenal’s draw at Atletico Madrid | OneFootball

Arsenal and Declan Rice are waiting to learn if the comments the Gunners midfielder made last night about the referee could land him in disciplinary hot water with UEFA, according to the Sun.

The Arsenal star and Gunners manager Mikel Arteta were unimpressed with the officiating in their 1-1 draw against Atletico Madrid in the first-leg of their Champions League semi-final tie.

The North London club will hope the refereeing is better in the second-leg at Emirates Stadium next Wednesday after they were denied a penalty on Tuesday night.

Referee Danny Makkelie pointed to the spot after David Hancko brought down Eberechi Eze, but ended up reversing the call after VAR ordered him to have another look at it on the monitor.

“The second one, Ebs’ one, is a clear penalty,” Rice told broadcaster Stan Sport after the match.

“So I don’t know how that has not been given. I think the fans provoked the decision and changed the ref’s mind.”

UEFA could claim he questioned the referee’s but Makkelie has to include it in his report before taking action.

The Arsenal star was hit with a two-match ban in June 2022 following an angry rant at match officials following West Ham United’s defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League semi-finals a month earlier.

His comments last night are not as vitriolic as those from four years ago but he could still be punished depending on what the ref writes in his report.

He is not currently at risk of missing next week’s return leg and Arsenal will hope he escapes any form of punishment entirely.

The Gunners return to action on Saturday when they host Fulham in the Premier League, and a victory will be huge ahead of their second-leg of the Champions League semi-final.