FANS have been cracked up by the bizarre moment that the referee snatched a towel away from Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori.
Calafiori sneakily stole Newcastle stopper Nick Pope’s towel to dry the ball before taking a throw in.
But referee Jarred Gillett saw the cheeky tactic from the Italian, and took the towel off him to return it to the Englishman’s goal.
Fans took to social media to joke about the bizarre moment.
Some thought that the ref simply intervened to stop Calafiori drying the ball at all, with one fan saying: “Towel throw in rule might be the funniest rule introduced.”
Another fan added: “I’ve never in my life seen a referee take a towel away from a player”
But most found humour in the theft itself, with a third fan comparing the antics to that of a classic Premier League side.
They said: “Calafiori stealing Nick Pope’s towel to wipe the ball before the throw in, Proper Stoke City football on a Monday night.”
And a fourth fan chimed in by saying: “Riccardo Calafiori borrowing Nick Pope’s towel to dry the ball, before referee Jarred Gillett puts a stop to it.”
As much fun as Gunners fans found in the strange moment, it was Newcastle fans who would have the last laugh of the first half.
New forward signing Nick Woltemade handed his side the lead with a leaping header past David Raya in the 34th minute.
It was the 6ft 6in German’s second headed goal at St James’ Park since arriving from Stuttgart at the end of the summer window.
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