It is becoming a cliche nowadays that after nearly every single game that Arsenal don’t win, Arsene Wenger immediately jumps in front of the cameras and rants about the terrible decisions against us and the dire quality of the standard of refereeing in the Premier League. Sometimes of course he is absolutely right like the penalty that Mike Dean gave against at West Brom the other night, but is he right on every single occasion? And how do you think the referees feel when they are being questioned over every 50/50 decision they make in a game?
This has been a particularly bad season for Arsenal and Wenger has complained about the refs many many times, as he did yet again when discussing the Mike Dean incident. Wenger said: “No, he saw what he wanted to see and we have to deal with that. We have to put that behind us and focus on our next game, not to dwell on it.
“I think we had a convincing result at Crystal Palace and we would have won this game as well, so let’s continue to focus on how we play and to win the games.
“My job is to stand up for the results. Part of that is as well to stand up for things I’m not responsible for. You could argue as well that sometimes I get credit for things I’m not responsible for as well!
“Unfortunately, that’s the case. It was very disappointing in the way it happened. I must say what is more frustrating for me is that it happened many times this season – at Stoke, at Watford, at Manchester City, at West Brom. That is a concerning coincidence for me. That’s why I was not happy at all with the movement that the referee made to show why he gave the penalty, because that didn’t correspond at all with what happened. On that front, it’s a bit worrying.”
To me it looks like Wenger is at war with the referees. He criticizes them at every game and calls for them to be punished. Does he think this is going to persuade them to look on Arsenal favourably the next time there is a 50/50 decision? I doubt that very much.
When you see managers like Klopp or Conte on the touchlines at games, they spend all the match shouting instructions at their players, egging them on and advising them on positional play, and they argue with the fourth official if there is a particularly bad foul or somesuch, but Wenger? He sits in his seat playing with his zip, and it seems the only time he gets up is when he wants to shout at the referee or rant at the Fourth official. How much must these men hate coming to watch over Arsenal games? They know how much Wenger despises them as he makes it very clear. Have you ever heard Wenger praise a referee after a game?
So I believe he has made the referees into his enemies, and if you go to war you must expect your enemy to retaliate now and then – so is it any surprise that they will try to hurt Arsenal to get at Wenger. They will be criticized whatever they do so why should they care?
Maybe it’s time to call a truce?
Admin
So Wenger wants accountability for referees poor decisions that are having a negative impact on Arsenal…interesting, very interesting Mr Wenger.
Wenger is always focused on the next game :)) Now this a manager for the future!
Did you see the video where Mike Dean said “I’m sorry” three times to Wenger?
One Arsene you seem like a spud fan.
only guy on this site who supports wenger.
Nah, just a counterweight to some on here who are more happy to be right than actually seeing the club do well. I doubt we are winning the treble anytime soon but even if we did, I doubt they’ll see it as positive, they just want what they want, they just want the satisfaction of being right at any cost even if it means our beloved club getting relegated. Wenger has been a law unto himself for so long that he temporarily forgot how to manage a team, Gazidis became complacent also and in a desperate attempt to balance the books kept selling our best players, a strategy that was supposed to be temporary when the stadium was being built and money was scarce, he respected Wenger too much that he forgot to do his job as CEO, we fell into a spiral. The fans came out vocally in a backlash that surprised them all and they were brought back to earth, Wenger all of a sudden is slowly but surely getting back to managing the team with very little sentiments, even adapting formations, Gazidis is beginning to do his job as CEO by bringing in a world class backroom to support Wenger or whoever succeeds him eventually, Wenger obviously cannot be expected to dance to the tunes of a director of football at this stage in his career, imagine Wenger wanting Lukaku but DoF overrules him and bring in Morata for the same amount like it played out at Chelsea. The yes men he’s surrounded himself with over the years who have aided his and consequently, the clubs descent into mediocrity are being systematically rooted out; Mlinstat for Rowley, Fahmy [Team Sky contract negotiator], Sanhelli from Barca…with a backroom like this two seasons ago, I’m confident we’d have paid £10 million for Van Dijk from Celtic and not 75like Liverpool just did freeing up more cash for even more transfers. In all, I’m not getting carried away but I choose to see the good that is likely to come out of this structural reshuffle, Wenger in or Wenger out. In the meantime, I choose to support the players and the manager, even Sanchez, like him or not has actually succeeded in rocking the boat of complacency that has plagued us for years, but then he still celebrates when he scores, that’s what winners do, they speak up when they have to and know when to get with the program, doesn’t necessarily mean they have to drop their guard. The fans eventually became the catalyst for change, but some are still actively calling for blood, not wanting to allow the seeds of the change we all clamoured for to actually fester, they’d rather sacrifice our collective happiness on the alter of their selfish and narcissistic need to be right.
I take no pleasure in saying that Wenger should have never signed a new contract nor been offered one for one simple reason I do not believe he has anything left to give. He’s been brilliant for us I am never ever going to deny it but its time now. I respect you view though. Regards the re structuring, I see the opposite, gazidis knows that it’s easier to get a coach in rather than an all singing and all dancing replacement for Wenger. I think we’re in the last chapter of Wenger now. Personally I will never call for Wenger to be sacked and if he resigns at the end of the season I will sing his name but it’s getting silly now, we’re not progressing, some players are regressing and we’re in massive danger of becoming a 5th – 8th placed team. We are better than that. We were a big club before Wenger and we’ll be a big club after he’s gone.
spot on!!!
No good being sorry after the fact …. come on now
This whole referees being against Arsenal issue, whether or not Wenger continues his embarrassing and futile behaviour ; flapping his arms, throwing water bottles, ranting at the fourth official etc etc, is a TOTAL RED HERRING. To go down this road is to join in Wengers deflection from the truth tactics. Why not be honest with ourselves? We all know Wenger is the REAL PROBLEM and awful as he definitely is, Mike Dean is not responsible for all our woes over the last decade. All fair minded and rational fans know that truth full well. My take is that virtually ALL refs are sub -standard and Dean is the worst (Most of them are too old and unfit and we need far younger, ex-players fast tracked through as refs, but that is another subject). But I STRESS, blaming refs is playing Wengers own deceitful and cowardly game . Let us put the blame where we all know it lies. WITH WENGER!
Further to my above comments on blaming refs, surely we can all see that Wenger is hoping to deflect rightful criticism from his own incompetance by hoping we all play his trick; blaming refs, instead of HIM for all our ills. Don’t fall for this con trick by our “manager.” Yes most refs are dreadful but the real problem is Wenger, not refs.
I hope your pet don’t run away from home, I have a sneaky feeling sacking Wenger might be the only way your pet’s coming back home.
I have no idea what you are talking about and I doubt any one else does either. Can’t you make whatever your point is in plain, clear English? Perhaps you don’t actually want to make a proper comment; but merely gain an ego trip reputation for “wit”, as you clearly think it to be.
You, my friend, are special. Lol.
Thanks for the compliment but I am not. I am just an ordinary fan who passionately wants what is best for our club, LIKE ALL OTHER FANS, so ordinary and glad to be, so NOT special. But in Wenger fashion , you have”deflected” away from answering my question which was: What on earth were you talking about in your post about “my pet”?
Shut up you idiot! I’ve seen Wenger throw a water bottle once and that was after the game against Spurs about 6 or 7 years ago or even longer, when Spurs scored an equaliser with seconds to go. Wenger does need to leave, I wanted him out about 6 seasons ago for his stupid transfer procrastinating and stupid contract policies.
I saw Bould throwing with chewing gum :))
you are such an ass hole to write or say a thing like this…is it not obvious to you that English referees are a joke wen it comes to all arsenal games…u hardly see them officiate arsenal or treat arsenal like a big club even wen d play a smaller team…and all the smaller teams knows this and that’s why the down-look arsenal anytime the come up against them
Be careful. Calling a fellow gooner an A* hole is unacceptable on an Arsenal site, whether its an article writer or someone writing a comment. I suggest you tone down the language.
It’ll happen again tomorrow night no doubt….. although Mike Dean is a k**b
I dont think mike dean or any other referee is the one who tells the arsenal players to pass the ball aimlessly around the box or make numerous mistakes.
wenger trying to deflect.
this is not 2007 try another trick,we have heard this one before.
For a change, you guys can support Liverpool or Tottenham. Four years no trophy. Three FA Cup for Arsenal in 4 years. Wenger is bad a Coach deflecting criticism from himself. But he mentioned the matches we were robbed by referees. Did you watch those matches to say he is not right? Speaking out helps our cause because the referees will be careful now they are out in the arena. Enough of Wenger bashing.
Well it’s landed him in hot water and he’s been charged with something. Maybe they’ll lock him up, let Bould take over. Ridiculous wish hah? No more than the state of this club at the moment. Think I’ve just written this season off even for 4th place
Dean is shiit,but if Arsenal had scored goals before that incident that wouldnt have had any bearing on the out come of match.
Wenger is Arsenal problem.
Arsenal is very boring to watch too many side way passes,not been ruthless and incisive.Arsene has passed it he should just leave Arsenal at d end of the season.no team is afraid of playing Arsenal any more.
west brom has draw 00 liverpool at Anfield tey are not that easy to beat
Is that why they are second from bottom?
Nah, just a counterweight to some on here who are more happy to be right than actually seeing the club do well. I doubt we are winning the treble anytime soon but even if we did, I doubt they’ll see it as positive, they just want what they want, they just want the satisfaction of being right at any cost even if it means our beloved club getting relegated. Wenger has been a law unto himself for so long that he temporarily forgot how to manage a team, Gazidis became complacent also and in a desperate attempt to balance the books kept selling our best players, a strategy that was supposed to be temporary when the stadium was being built and money was scarce, he respected Wenger too much that he forgot to do his job as CEO, we fell into a spiral. The fans came out vocally in a backlash that surprised them all and they were brought back to earth, Wenger all of a sudden is slowly but surely getting back to managing the team with very little sentiments, even adapting formations, Gazidis is beginning to do his job as CEO by bringing in a world class backroom to support Wenger or whoever succeeds him eventually, Wenger obviously cannot be expected to dance to the tunes of a director of football at this stage in his career, imagine Wenger wanting Lukaku but DoF overrules him and bring in Morata for the same amount like it played out at Chelsea. The yes men he’s surrounded himself with over the years who have aided his and consequently, the clubs descent into mediocrity are being systematically rooted out; Mlinstat for Rowley, Fahmy [Team Sky contract negotiator], Sanhelli from Barca…with a backroom like this two seasons ago, I’m confident we’d have paid £10 million for Van Dijk from Celtic and not 75like Liverpool just did freeing up more cash for even more transfers. In all, I’m not getting carried away but I choose to see the good that is likely to come out of this structural reshuffle, Wenger in or Wenger out. In the meantime, I choose to support the players and the manager, even Sanchez, like him or not has actually succeeded in rocking the boat of complacency that has plagued us for years, but then he still celebrates when he scores, that’s what winners do, they speak up when they have to and know when to get with the program, doesn’t necessarily mean they have to drop their guard. The fans eventually became the catalyst for change, but some are still actively calling for blood, not wanting to allow the seeds of the change we all clamoured for to actually fester, they’d rather sacrifice our collective happiness on the alter of their selfish and narcissistic need to be right.
Pls admin, kindly remove this, its a duplicate. Thanks.
anyway you were right!!!
The refereeing in England is bad, I see it in the premier league right down to my sons Sunday league side and Wenger isn’t wrong for saying it. The difference is though that we’ve heard it all before from him(apart from after the spurs game) and so does come across as a deflection to take away from what was another poor performance. I genuinely believe that Wenger is under more pressure than ever before, he knows it so obviously looses it when bad decisions go against us but these decisions don’t happen every game and the table won’t lie at the end of the season
Truth of a matter is that we’re an easy target these days. If it’s not Sanchez/Ozil transfer saga, it’s something else. The refs, the media, the pundits, the ex-players have been on our case for quite some time now. Did Mike Dean cost us 2 points? He probably did. But that’s not the only problem. I’m an AKB but I still can’t figure out why in the world you would play 3 CB’s against the sh!%*iest team in the league. I still don’t understand what Iwobi’s position is, and what it is exactly he brings to the table. When those things get sort out, the rest will follow. Oh, and I guess to answer the original question: No, it doesn’t help to criticize refs after the fact because at some point of time it’ll come back and bite you in the arse.
To claim the refs “have been on our case for quite some time now” is just silly, wrong and foolish. Of course they have not. Though mainly incompetant , they are honest and it is paranoia to kid yourself otherwise. The pundits and ex-players(in the media) are paid to give their honest opinion and that is what they do. Most ex-players were once prominent Gooners, many of them firm fans, Henry, Wrighty, Parlour, Dixon, Smith etc and knowing that Wenger is not up to the job, say what they think about his ineptness. You admit to being an AKB but then yourself and rightly criticise him. WHY SHOULD OTHERS WHO THINK HIM USELESS NOT HAVE THAT SAME RIGHT? I doubt much thought or consistency has gone into your unthinking post. Apart from which, any Gooner still wanting Wenger to stay has perception problems. Why not rethink your views and first ask yourself why you still are an AKB? I suspect that what you are is , like others, a decent and caring fan, but one who is mixing up criticism of the present decision makers with criticism of our club. Wenger, Kroenke , Gazidis are NOT the club. WE ALL ARE, BECAUSE WE ARE LIFE LONG FANS. They are merely the present custodians who we need to remove asap to rescue our club and make it honourable and successful again.
Ot the best signing we can hope for is wenger to resign ?
This whole problem goes back before Mike Dean. It all started in the 90’s when Manchester United fan Mike Riley was a referee. (He actually gave Ruud van Nistelroy 11 penalties in 11 games)He constantly had rows with Wenger and if you remember was the referee who gave the disgraceful penalty against Sol Campbell that ended Arsenal’s 49 match unbeaten run. After he finished refereeing he was given the top job at the PGMOL who appoint all referees and is the referees boss. Without doubt he’s been giving Arsenal Football Club a hard time ever since. With him in charge no referee faces any sanctions whatsoever for bad decisions against Arsenal if anything he encourages them. The PGMOL is corrupt untouchable organisation that’s impossible to contact
What your about to read is article from the nineties which I still carry in my season ticket book. Headline: HOTSHOT HAS LIFE OF RILEY:: Arsene Wengers claim that Mike Riley is worth a goal start to Manchester United could land him in hot water. But the facts show exactly why the Arsenal boss feels that way. Wenger, who was yesterday asked by the FA to explain his remarks. dreads seeing ref Riley in charge. United striker Ruud van Nistelroy must love the sight of the Leeds official. The Dutchman has played in nine matches overseen by Riley and scored 12 goals nine of them penalties. And Van Nistelroy was on target from the spot as United beat Arsenal on Sunday
I’d like any doubters on these pages to answer one question, WHY IS THERE NOT ONE REFEREE ON THE PREMIER LEAGUE LIST OF FROM SOUTHERN ENGLAND ? By the way Mike Riley is from West Yorkshire, 30 miles from 90% of referees
Sorry Kenny. You are just wrong and bordering on paranoia with this one. Yes, I agree Riley was hopeless and out of his depth as refs chief AND MOST REFS ARE POOR TO HOPELESS BUT NOT CROOKED. As to where they all live, ther have been many in recent times from Southern England. Top refs tend not to come from London proper as there are so many league clubs the which they could be regarded as “supporting and being biased”. I just don’t buy refs conspiracies. Hopeless, yes, Bent? NO WAY! Can you not see how Wenger is using the whole refs debate to deflect fans from his own whole ineptness. The ones who buy into it are in fact helping him in his many excuses. If it is not the refs, it is injuries, fixtures list, weather, bad luck, time of day for playing. In fact anything but HIM! Why play his game?
No. It’s wenger still sitting on his arse as manager that makes things worse.
Referees need to be held to account. Yes their job is difficult, but handball is not marginal. There are CLEAR rules on how to officiate when a ball strikes hand in the penalty area.
Any doubt, you don’t penalise. Mike Dean is a classic officious little man who needs taking down a peg or two. He also needs to be penalised through demotion to the championship for a few months, but will he be? Nah.
Wenger gets so annoyed because managers mistakes are scrutinised, but referees who can have such a HUGE impact on a game (such as this one) escape censure or punishment or anything. Law unto themselves which breeds corruption and amateur standards.
We invented the game, but our referees are not that great when it comes to the crunch. All of which adds to the replay/video evidence argument which I’m all for. Take the power away from the Mike Dean’s of this world who seem to relish the power they hold.
I don’t believe that Arsenal get any worse decisions than any other club, nor do I think we are unlucky.
However the refereeing in this country is poor though and has been for as long as I have been alive. The West Brom decision is just one example out of many. Refereeing is a hard job but undoubtedly our refs make a worse job of it than they should.
I should say though that I am somewhat biased about our referees having been banned at the age of 10 from the junior school team for making my feelings known to the ref after he made one really bad decision too many.
Well said Ivan and thanks for injecting a sense of perspective and honesty into the debate. My posts say the same thing as yours on this one(and much else besides).
Jon, We agree on most things but with this one we’re miles apart, call them crooked or bias, to me there’s not a lot of difference, if you make bias decision, your cheating, when’s the last time you saw Liverpool or United get a bad decision and when they do, which is incredibly rare, it’s usually a genuine mistake and all hell breaks loose. You say, I’m paranoid but with respect Jon, I think you may be a bit naive. You say there’s been many from London in recent times, well, the last one from London was Barry Knight, retired 2008 there we’re three from Kent, Steve Bennet, retired 2010, Andy D’urso , retired 2005 and David Ellery, the Harrow school master , retired 2003, and Graham Barbour from Surrey, retired 2004, apart from them nothing, 90% northerners. Can’t you see Jon these refs are all controlled by Riley whose been described by many people not only me ,ex managers, journalists etc as being one of the most bias referees ever to officiate the English game. How they gave him the leadership at the PGMOL, God only knows, then again you know what I think about that organisation.
I’d just like to add, I’m not defending Wenger’s behaviour one bit, he brings these terrible decisions on himself but I am defending Arsenal Football Club
Hi Kenny, I’m with Jon on this one. There may be a bias towards having more Northern referees but I don’t believe they are biased against us in the way of decision making it is just that they are that bad.
However I do agree with you about them having an ex-referee who was absolutely dreadful in his day highlights what a joke the system has become and it was poor before.
That’s fair enough Ivan, I respect you and Jon’s position. No problem
Snap Kenny total respect for you and your view too.