Arsenal’s hopes of ending the season with silverware took a major hit in their final English Premier League game of the season when their captain Laurent Koscielny was sent off for a dangerous tackle on Everton winger Enner Valencia at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
A straight red card carries a three-game suspension with it (Including the game in which the player got sent off) and with no more league games remaining in the season, it means the French centre-back will miss Saturday’s FA Cup final against Chelsea. He will also miss the 2017-18 season opener. But the fact that he will be absent from Wembley Stadium on Saturday will be worrying the Gunners faithful as they seek to derail their arch-rivals chances of lifting a League and Cup double.
The 31-year-old defender has a history of getting sent off but this season his discipline record has been decent, having accumulated five cautions and one red card.
Koscielny's dismissal in the 14th minute leaves Arsenal in a bit of bother as the Gunners cannot afford to drop points against the Toffees as they make a last-ditch effort to finish in the top four and hence, qualify for next year’s Champions League.