Joel Veltman has broken his silence on Declan Rice's red card during Arsenal's recent 1-1 draw with Brighton after being involved in an altercation with the Gunners star.
The two players made headlines just a few weeks ago when Rice was shown a second yellow during Arsenal's fiercely-contested clash with the Seagulls.
Already cautioned, the England international was given his marching orders as Veltman attempted to take a quick free-kick, kicking Rice in the process as he attempted to make contact with the ball.
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Many were left flabbergasted inside the Emirates Stadium with Rice now set to miss Sunday's trip to Tottenham in the North London derby after a unanimous ruling on the decision.
Veltman spoke to Sky Sports over the controversial dismissal earlier this week, admitting he did not agree with the decision made by referee Chris Kavanagh.
"For me it goes really far with common things on social media and we have a game coming up so I don't want to say a lot about it, but the only thing I can say is that I didn't want to kick him," he said.
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"It's just that he kicked it away and I kicked him.
"I find it quite harsh, if you see my reaction I was not going to the referee and asking for a second yellow card.
"I think he (Rice) gave an amazing comment that has personally surprised me about him is that he told the media after the game 'I didn't need to kick it, I know better'.
"That's amazing personality from him."
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Rice featured for the Three Lions during the recent international break, netting in England's 2-0 win over the Republic of Ireland before playing the full 90 minutes of the 2-0 success against Finland.
Arsenal are set to be without the 25-year-old and also captain Martin Odegaard for the trip to Spurs, who was injured for Norway on Monday.
Riccardo Calafiori is also a doubt after taking a nasty knock in Italy's Nations League clash with France.
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Having not lost so far this season, Mikel Arteta's men will be hoping to go one better than their second-placed finish in 2023/24.
Experienced forward Raheem Sterling arrived from Chelsea on deadline day and could be in line to make his debut this weekend.
"Yes, we’ll have to see and speak to him on what he’s been doing and how he’s feeling about it," the Arsenal boss said regarding Sterling last month.
"We have to try to find quick wins to get him up to speed as quick as possible and him understanding what we are looking for from him and the dynamics of the team.
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"We will use this time to do that and as soon as possible, get him involved.
Topics: Arsenal, Declan Rice, Brighton And Hove Albion
Matthew Holt