Arsene Wenger denied seeing a confrontation between two of his players following the tense 1-0 win over West Brom on Boxing Day.
In scenes quoted and captured on video by the Daily Mirror, when asked by a reporter about whether he knew what Lucas Perez and Gabriel had been arguing about, the French manager smiled knowingly while denying having seen the incident. He then blamed “South American temper” for the problems with a smile, before realising that this meant he was essentially blaming Gabriel and quickly adding “and Spanish…”.
The incident didn’t really turn into anything too serious, but it’s a sign of the tension around Arsenal as they continue to put in unconvincing performances in pursuit of runaway leaders Chelsea.
While Arsenal fans won’t like seeing these tensions boil over dangerously on the pitch, some will be pleased to see that even fringe players like Gabriel and Perez are commmited enough to the cause to get passionate.