The Gunners hosted the Seagulls and despite an early dominance, the home side entered half-time only 1-0 up after Saka set up Kai Havertz for the opener in the 38th minute.
As a result, the North London giants emerged from the break eager to increase their lead but were dealt a huge blow after Declan Rice was sent off only four minutes after the restart.
The English midfielder, who was already on a yellow, toe-poked the ball away just as Joël Ivo Veltman appeared set to take a quick free kick. While the Brighton defender ultimately clattered Rice, it was the latter who was shown a yellow card — his second of the day — and eventually sent off for kicking the ball away and delaying a restart.
The Seagulls were the dominant team from then on, with the visitors equalizing less than 10 minutes after Rice's sending-off. Fortunately for the home side, they held on to draw 1-1 but their Spanish manager was unhappy with the red card nonetheless.
"No, none, like always," the visibly irritated Arteta replied when asked by TNT Sports what explanation he was given for Rice's red card.
"If that happens throughout the game in a consistent way, that is fine, but it didn't happen.
"In the first half, there were a number of occasions when they kicked the ball our way and nothing happened.
"So it's inconsistency especially because it was in an area that is not critical," the Spaniard added.
Mikel expressed his anger even further during his post-match press conference, saying: "I was amazed. Amazed, amazed, amazed because of how inconsistent decisions can be. In the first half, there were two incidents, but nothing happened.
"And in a non-critical area, the ball hits Declan's heel. He turns around, doesn't see the player coming, and touches the ball.
"By law, he [the referee] can make that call but by law, he needs to make the next call which is a red card, so we play 10 against 10."
Bukayo Saka echoed the manager's sentiment, calling the referee's decision harsh and inconsistent. However, the English winger did not dwell too long on this topic during his post-match interview, adding that his team could have been better in the first half and that this result should not effect their title race with Manchester City.
The Premier League pauses after this round due to the upcoming international break. However, Arsenal travel to Tottenham after the break and will be without their most expensive signing in history for the North London Derby.
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