Premier League
Wenger: People After My Fall
Under-pressure Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger believes pundits can “brainwash” football fans with their judgements.
Wenger revealed he had reviewed his side’s 5-1 home defeat to Bayern Munich three times, as well as watching Barcelona’s dramatic Champions League comeback against Paris Saint-Germain.
And the Frenchman says doing that has reminded him why he tries to keep an objective view on any criticism he receives.
“I watch many games,” said Wenger. “For example on Friday night I watched the last 20 minutes of Paris Saint-Germain against Barcelona again.
“It is interesting once you see all the conclusions that come out of the game. The same people that speak after the game said with 10 minutes to go that PSG were absolutely outstanding and 10 minutes later they were absolutely rubbish.
“It is always interesting to take a distance, because people keep your eye and brainwash you with what you think is right.
“We are in the semi-final of the FA Cup. How many times have we been? You have to accept that nothing is good enough; you have to live with that.
“Get out of that heated atmosphere and look at things in an objective way. Sometimes it confirms what people say. Sometimes it doesn’t.
“It is down to me to take the right distance – people are right and people are wrong as well. I managed about 2,000 games and might know a little something about the game as well.
“No matter what happens in the future you will always lose games. I can’t guarantee we will win all the games.”
Wenger acknowledges it is impossible to block out all the discussion and debate in the modern game.
“You cannot live in an isolated world, because when you are a football player, even if you don’t read, people tell you what people say,” he said.
“Like in your job as well (as journalists), when you write an article people say ‘that’s rubbish’, ‘that’s great’ or ‘that’s not great’.
“You cannot live in a world where you cannot be influenced by everything.
“Maybe 30 years ago, the guy who lost a game has one -journalist who went with the players to the pub and had a beer after and sometimes two and three, four, five or more.
“The importance of the game has become bigger. You can’t escape any more. No matter where a player goes today it is talked about. You have so many news channels.”
Thomas Partey, who formerly played for English Premier League soccer club Arsenal, has been charged with rape and sexual assault, London’s Metropolitan Police said on Friday.
Partey, a Ghana international, was charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, with the charges relating to three women and the offences reported to have taken place between 2021 and 2022, the statement said.
Partey’s management did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
He is due to appear at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Aug. 5.
Partey, 32, was signed by Arsenal from Atletico Madrid for 50 million euros ($59 million) in October 2020 and became a key member of Arsenal’s first team.
He was first arrested in July 2022, though he was not named at the time and continued to play for Arsenal while investigations were ongoing.
-Reuters
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Five players including England forward Marcus Rashford and Argentina winger Alejandro Garnacho have informed Manchester United that they wish to explore a future away from the Premier League side, a club source said on Friday.
Brazilian midfielder Antony, Dutch defender Tyrell Malacia and England international Jadon Sancho are also looking to leave the club, the source added.
Rashford, who has made more than 400 senior appearances for United, has fallen out of favour with manager Ruben Amorim, played for Aston Villa on loan while United had their worst-ever Premier League campaign, finishing 15th in the standings.
Amorim had called Rashford’s work rate into question, saying he would rather put a goalkeeper coach on the bench than a player not giving their all.
Rashford said he was feeling fitter and better since joining Villa, where he scored two goals in 10 league appearances.
United also failed to qualify for the Champions League as they lost the Europa League final 1-0 to Tottenham Hotspur. Garnacho, who was a late substitute in the final, voiced his displeasure on social media after the loss.
“Up until the final, I played every round helping the team, and today I play 20 minutes, I don’t know,” he wrote in a post . “The final will influence (my decision), but the whole season, the situation of the club.”
Sancho was on loan at Chelsea, where he made 31 league appearances last season. Antony, who joined United from Ajax Amsterdam in 2022 for a reported initial transfer fee of more than $100 million, scored five goals in 17 LaLiga appearances on loan at Real Betis.
Malacia joined Dutch side PSV Eindhoven on loan in February.
-Reuters
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Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes turned down the opportunity to join Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal in order to keep playing “at the highest level”, he said on Tuesday.
The Portuguese midfielder admitted that he had considered the move, which media reports said was worth four times his current salary, after being contacted by Al-Hilal’s president.
“There was that possibility, the president of Al-Hilal called me a month ago to ask me about it,” Fernandes, who is preparing to face Germany with Portugal, told reporters on Tuesday.
“It was a big offer, very ambitious. There was a waiting period for me to think about the future.”
Fernandes ultimately decided to stay at United and said he was motivated by his desire to continue playing at the top level and encouraged by his family and the club’s coach Ruben Amorim.
“I would be willing to do it if Manchester United thought so,” Fernandes added. “I spoke to the coach Ruben Amorim who really tried to talk me out of it. The club said they would not be willing to sell me, only if I wanted to leave.
“I spoke to my wife and family, and she asked me what my personal goals were in my career.
“It would have been easy to move there but I want to keep myself at the highest level, playing in the big competitions and I feel capable of it. I am happy with my decision.”
The 30-year-old Fernandes scored 19 goals and provided 19 assists in 57 appearances across all competitions for United last season, winning the club’s Player of the Year award for the fourth time.
However, it was a season to forget for the team, as they finished 15th in the Premier League, their lowest league finish in half a century, and lost the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur.
-Reuters
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