“If he’s not behaving himself, then it’s likely others in his team aren’t going to either.”
Richard Keys has suggested that Arsenal and Mikel Arteta were partly responsible for the ugly scenes at the end of the north London derby on Sunday afternoon. The Gunners beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 to go eight points clear at the top of the Premier League table.
Following the full-time whistle, Spurs forward Richarlison confronted Aaron Ramsdale, who had been gesturing towards the home supporters. A Tottenham fan then made his way onto the advertising hoarding and appeared to swing a kick at Ramsdale.
Arsenal manager Arteta was forced to drag both Ramsdale and Gunners midfielder Granit Xhaka away from the ensuing fracas.
Tottenham released a statement soon after and promised to enforce the ‘strongest possible action’ against the fan.
“We are appalled by the behaviour of a supporter that attempted to attack Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale at the end of today’s match,” Tottenham’s statement reads.
“Violence in any form has no place in football. The club has reviewed its CCTV footage to identify the supporter and will be working with the Met Police, Arsenal and Aaron Ramsdale to take the strongest possible action, including an immediate ban from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.”
There is surely no justification for the fan’s violent act. Former Sky Sports broadcaster Richard Keys, however, made a bizarre claim on coverage of the game.
He suggested that Arteta was the ‘most to blame’ for the tense atmosphere which led to the attack. Keys has frequently criticised the Arsenal coach for his touchline behaviour.
https://twitter.com/SkySportsPL/status/1614691627854958592
“Ramsdale has got form of winding supporters up,” Keys said on beIN SPORTS.
“Apparently, he’s been having an exchange during that second half with the Tottenham fans. Ben White was over there as well at two-nil to Arsenal.
“My fear is and I’ve said it for a long time now, the guy in the middle there (Mikel Arteta), is the one that’s most to blame for the inflammatory behaviour on the touchline that winds people up.
“And if he’s not behaving himself, then it’s likely that others in his team are not going to either. Who ultimately then becomes the master of the discipline? There isn’t anyone.
🗣️ "The guy in the middle there [Arteta] is most to blame for the inflammatory behaviour touchline that winds people up!"@richardajkeys has his say on the post-match scenes following the North London derby. #beINPL #TOTARS ⚪️🔴 pic.twitter.com/UhZbxItIqY
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) January 15, 2023
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Related links.
- Aaron Ramsdale kicked by fan as Arsenal and Tottenham clash after London derby.
- Man United could make move for Harry Kane as they draw up striker shortlist.
- Jamie Carragher responds to Richard Keys’ ‘borderline racist’ accusation.
