Arsène Wenger says Arsenal should have had a penalty at Swansea - The Guardian

Arsène Wenger claimed Arsenal should have had a penalty which would have settled Sunday's third-round FA Cup tie against Swansea at the first attempt.

After two well-matched teams had drawn 2-2, Wenger claimed: "We should have won." Referring to a 51st-minute incident, when Aaron Ramsey went down inside the area with Dwight Tiendalli in close proximity, the Arsenal manager said: "It was a penalty. The referee [Howard Webb] didn't give it because he thought it [the alleged foul] wasn't deliberate, but Aaron didn't trip himself. He was clipped by the Swansea player."

The majority view of non-partisan observers appeared to be that Ramsey had got his feet in a tangle and brought himself down but Wenger saw fit to comment on the referee's thought processes despite admitting that he had not spoken to him.

Michael Laudrup, the Swansea manager, commented on the subject before having the benefit of video replays. He said: "My first reaction was that it should have been a penalty but I'll have to see it again before I know for sure. My overall feeling was that it was a fair result."

Both managers admitted that the replay, at the Emirates on 16 January, is the last thing they need. Swansea already have home and away Capital One Cup semi-finals against Chelsea, as well as Premier League fixtures against Everton, Stoke and Sunderland, to play in January. For Arsenal the replay will be sandwiched between testing league matches against Manchester City and Chelsea.

Laudrup said: "The last thing I want is to lose any game but just behind that comes a replay with the two Chelsea games in mind. Still, it is another big match to look forward to and we have a good record at their place, where we won 2-0 in December."

In the same vein Wenger said: "I'm frustrated because I didn't want another game but, if it's a choice between playing again or going out of the Cup, I'll take the replay every time."

There was praise from both sides for Kyle Bartley, the Swansea centre-half who joined from Arsenal last summer. Making only his second appearance to give the club captain, Ashley Williams, a rest, Bartley formed an outstanding centre-back partnership with Chico Flores. "I thought he was great," Laudrup said. Wenger revealed that he had been reluctant to let Bartley leave but that the 21-year-old had been "impatient" in a longish queue for places in central defence. "He is a good player and he had a good game," the Arsenal manager said.

Fielding questions about Danny Graham, whose late equaliser on Sunday was his third goal in the last three games, Laudrup said he had received no bids for the former Watford striker, who is known to interest Norwich and Reading. "He is playing well right now and he's important to us because he is scoring goals, but will he be staying? Let's see what he says about that. Some players are not satisfied when they're not playing regularly."