FA investigating Arsenal celebrations after last-minute winner against Bournemouth

The FA are looking into Arsenal's on-field celebrations after Reiss Nelson's dramatic last-minute winner against Bournemouth, according to reports.

The Gunners maintained their five point lead at the top of the Premier League on Saturday, coming from 2-0 down to beat Bournemouth 3-2 on a memorable afternoon in North London.

It was super sub Reiss Nelson who grabbed the winner in the seventh minute of added time, and it was a goal that sparked wild celebrations from fans, players and coaching staff.

In fact, numerous members of the Arsenal backroom staff made their way onto the Emirates pitch to celebrate, although Mikel Arteta maintained his distance from the touchline.

With those actions in mind, it looks like the Premier League leaders could be trouble after referee Chris Kavanagh reported the celebrations to the Football Association.

That's according to a report from football.london, who suggest the FA are now thought to be investigating Arsenal, although it is not clear if they will receive any sanction for them.

In terms of the laws of the game, the IFAB state that those in the technical area "must remain within its confines except in special circumstances, e.g. a physiotherapist/doctor entering the field of play, with the referee’s permission, to assess an injured player."

The rules also state that occupants of the technical area "must behave in a responsible manner".

Here's how fans have reacted to the news.

One Arsenal supporter commented on the story, saying: "There is no better advertisement for the PL and for football than the wild celebrations that went on after Nelson's winner. I've had opposition fans and non-football fans telling me how much they enjoyed scrolling through my celebration thread. This is simply good for football."

Another wrote: "Genuinely what is wrong with the referee and the FA? Celebrating a 97th minute winner in the title race, deserves a charge?" while a third said: "No words. Bruno will no doubt get away with pushing the linesman though."

A fourth added: The FA investigating Arsenal’s celebrations after their 97th minute winner is the most laughable thing I’ve heard in a long time. So out of touch with fans it’s frightening. Useless."

Understand the FA are looking into #AFC's celebrations after Reiss Nelson's winner vs Bournemouth after referee Chris Kavanaugh reported them.

Full story 👇https://t.co/RgX81pXi0k

— Kaya Kaynak (@kayakaynak97) March 6, 2023

Bournemouth manager Gary O'Neil was asked about Arsenal's celebrations after the Reiss Nelson goal, and he admitted to having no issue with them.

"I’ve no comment to make on what Arsenal did," O'Neil said in his post-match press conference.

"I shook hands with Mikel, it was a game he needed to win and I needed something from it too. We went to battle and he came out on top. They scored the goal, so they can celebrate however they like."

An FA spokesperson said referee Chris Kavanagh's match report was being reviewed when contacted by SPORTbible.