Arsenal have confirmed that they are investigating incidents which saw bottles and cups thrown in the direction of Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne in Wednesday's defeat.
The Gunners were knocked off the top of the table by the champions at the Emirates Stadium, where De Bruyne, Jack Grealish and Erling Braut Haaland all made the net ripple in a 3-1 win for Pep Guardiola's men.
Midway through the first half, De Bruyne latched onto a weak backpass from Takehiro Tomiyasu and curled a delightful effort over Aaron Ramsdale into the back of the net to open the scoring.
Bukayo Saka levelled matters from the penalty spot just before the break, but second-half strikes from Grealish and Haaland sent Guardiola's side back to the top of the table.
However, the result was marred by ugly scenes as De Bruyne made his way off the pitch, having been substituted for Kalvin Phillips in the 87th minute of the match.
This is disgraceful!
— Antoine Allen (@AntoineSpeaker) February 16, 2023
Manchester City star Kevin de Bruyne was the target of a number of bottles thrown by Arsenal fans.
Lose with dignity.
What should the punishment be? pic.twitter.com/kLh4Ahr5wl
As the Belgian playmaker made his way to the dugout around the perimeter of the field, at least three bottles and a cup were thrown in his direction from the home crowd before he sat down.
De Bruyne cut a relaxed and amused figure as the projectiles were being launched in his direction, giving a small smirk to the Arsenal fans while managing to avoid being hit by any of the objects, one of which struck the corner flag while another missed the midfielder as he ducked out of the way.
A statement released by Arsenal to the Evening Standard confirmed that the club are investigating the incidents, and the Gunners have insisted that any supporters found to have thrown the bottles will be subjected to "strict sanctions".
"We are studying CCTV and if we are able to identify the culprits they will be subject to strict sanctions. This is unacceptable and will not be tolerated," the statement read.
The report adds that the FA are also conducting their own investigation into the disgraceful scenes at the Emirates, which will likely land Arsenal in hot water with the governing body.
© Reuters
Posting on social media after the game, De Bruyne made light of the bottles being thrown at him, firstly showing a photo of his hand outstretched towards the crowd with the caption "Beer anyone?".
The 31-year-old subsequently cropped a second photo alongside the first showing him ducking out of the way of a cup being launched, accompanying the image with the caption "Thanks!".
Man City rose above Arsenal on goal difference courtesy of their midweek win in North London, although the Gunners still have a game in hand on the reigning champions.
Mikel Arteta's men will go back to the top of the pile with a draw or win against Aston Villa on Saturday lunchtime before Man City kick off against Nottingham Forest a couple of hours later.
Ben Knapton
