Newcastle United striker Nick Woltemade accused Arsenal centre back Gabriel of elbowing him in the face during Sunday’s fractious encounter, and used the Brazilian’s on-pitch apology as an admission of guilt after an incident which he deemed “not right.”
The two towering figures would prove to be protagonists in a heated 2–1 win for the visitors. Woltemade gave Newcastle a first-half lead against the run of play, out-jumping Gabriel to nod in from a corner, before Arsenal mounted a late comeback. Mikel Merino headed the Gunners level in the 84th minute while none other than Gabriel rose to prod a dramatic stoppage-time winner past Nick Pope.
However, Woltemade questioned whether Gabriel should have even been on the pitch by then.
“After the goal there was a situation I felt his elbow in my face. I’m two metres [tall], so his arm has to be really high,” the German forward huffed to Sky Sports. “I don’t know, I just said it to the referee that I felt something in the face and I think it’s not right to feel something in the face.”
The pair clashed immediately after the restart following Woltemade’s opener. Gabriel had appealed for a non-existent foul which the referee rightly ignored and, perhaps with a sense of injustice inspired by an overturned Arsenal penalty earlier in the half, the defender took his frustrations out on Woltemade.
Gabriel’s Eventful Afternoon
58% of Arsenal’s goals this season have come from set pieces. pic.twitter.com/t7zMlUbdKB
— Sports Illustrated FC (@SI_FootballClub) September 28, 2025
- 34 mins: Beaten in the air by Woltemade for Newcastle’s opener
- 35 mins: Elbows Woltemade in the face
- 86 mins: Gets away with handling the ball inside Arsenal’s box
- 90+6 mins: Scores the winning goal
In a curious twist of the fickle VAR fates, the officials at Stockley Park did not intervene on this potential red card incident. Woltemade wondered whether there may have been a different outcome had he made more of the contact.
“But I’m not the type of player to fall down for this,” he sighed. “It’s hard because sometimes maybe you have to do this, but this is not my type of football.”
“He [Gabriel] said sorry after, so I think he knew he hit me in my face,” Woltemade continued. “It didn’t solve the situation to be honest.
“I don’t like this, if you do some things in game and then a few seconds you say sorry, that’s not part of the game. I like this situation where you can have a good battle, but his elbow should not be in my face.”
Gabriel revels in the physical side of the game, particularly against Newcastle centre forwards apparently. The former Magpies striker Callum Wilson has discussed how playing the handsy Brazilian “is just like war.” “He wants to fight me, I want to fight him,” the Englishman shrugged. Woltemade clearly felt the fight went a little too far this weekend.
READ THE LATEST PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS, TRANSFER RUMOURS AND GOSSIP
This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘It’s Not Right’—Nick Woltemade Hits Out at Gabriel After Arsenal Loss.
