'Decisions like this can decide titles' - Fans left outraged after Gabriel escapes red card in Arsenal's draw with Brentford

Gabriel had been booked when he swung a leg at Outtara as he ran through on goal for Keith Andrews' side, after Keane Lewis-Potter had cancelled out Noni Madueke's header. The result means the Gunners are now just four points clear of second-placed Manchester City. 

Goalkeeper David Raya has already urged the club to "stick together", but fans are disappointed that Gabriel was not shown a red card. 

He told reporters: "Disappointed with just a point. We stick together. It's a tough place to come but we just have to stick together and we are still in a great position and we go again.

"It felt fine. We dominated most of the first half until they got momentum. We dealt with it very well and scored the goal in the second half. I thought that was going to be enough but they played dangerous on set pieces and we conceded. We had the chances to win the game but we didn't maximise them."

On the potential of a title race, he added: "We are still in a great position. We have to focus on ourselves. We have the FA Cup on Sunday but we go again on Wednesday."

Supporters have reacted with astonishment that Gabriel was not given his marching orders, given the clear nature of the foul, and the obvious disciplinary result.

@City_Chief said: "Gabriel was already on a yellow, yet somehow escaped a second booking and a red card for this reckless and dangerous foul. Decisions like this can decide titles. When margins are this tight, every call matters. Anything to help Arsenal win the league?"

@InvertTheWing referenced Tottenham captain Cristian Romero, who is currently serving a four-game ban: "Romero gets a 10 game suspension for the Gabriel challenge."

@Falsewinger said: "Gabriel escapes a second yellow. That's an atrocious decision from the referee, who might have triple captained Gabriel in FPL (like me)."

@AVFCStatto added: "Gabriel should be sent off. Checks badge. Arsenal. No red card."

@GeronimoMorgans concluded: "This is a second yellow for Gabriel. Clear red. How does this go unpunished?"

Mikel Arteta's side have now won just two of their last five games, drawing with the Bees and Nottingham Forest, as well as a defeat to Manchester United. Their two wins came against Leeds and Sunderland.

Midfielder Declan Rice told BBC Sport: "The game was split into different halves. It was their first 20 minutes, we ended the first half strong, we started the second half amazingly well and they ended the half better than us. We suffocated a lot after the goal."

"In this journey you are never going to be at the level for 70 games of the season but you have to be at the best you can. The small details, the basics, like I say this is a rollercoaster of a season. You can't be naïve to think this is going to be easy. We are playing against the best teams week in, week out. We have to keep pushing and believing in ourselves, controlling the controllable.

"We have to block out the outside noise. We have done that really well. People are going to talk up the title race and Arsenal but we have a really calm group. I'm not naïve to think Brentford are a pushover. They are one of the best teams in the league and their recent form shows that. It's a point gained in our journey but we wanted to win the game."

Arsenal face Wigan Athletic in the fourth round of the FA Cup this weekend before a clash with Wolves in the Premier League.