Frenchman wanted to wear a short-sleeved shirt at the Theatre of Dreams.
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Arsenal midfield player Mathieu Flamini and long-serving kit man Vic Akers were engaged in a furious row at half-time during the north London club’s recent Premier League encounter against champions Manchester United at Old Trafford, according to reports in the Daily Mirror.
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The heated argument was apparently caused by the France international deciding to cut the sleeves of his Gunners shirt off just prior to the start of the key clash at the Theatre of Dreams.
The north Londoners reportedly operate a club-wide policy whereby the captain of the team on the day of a fixture will decide whether the side is to wear their jerseys with long sleeves, or short, and on this occasion it was Thomas Vermaelen who opted for the former attire.
However, it is understood though that Flamini did not agree with his skipper’s decision and instead opted to cut the sleeves off his Arsenal shirt, which veteran kit man Akers did not notice until the half-time interval.
And it was then that the two became involved in a furious exchange, especially as the 67-year-old member of the Gunners backroom team wanted to auction off the players’ jerseys for charity after the end of the match.
“Vic and Mathieu had heated words at the end of the game,” a source told the Star.
“It is a tradition that all players wear the same shirt. Why he can’t simply roll his sleeves up rather than cut them off is beyond most of us.
“But only Bacary Sagna gave Vic any support over the issue.
“It didn’t help that the shirts were ones with a poppy on, that are sometimes auctioned off to raise money for charity.”
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