Pundit can’t believe what Mikel Arteta has now said about Tottenham
Noel Whelan has slammed Mikel Arteta for suggested the officiating had a meaningful impact on Tottenham’s 3-0 win over Arsenal.
The former Leeds striker, spekaing exclusively to Football Insider, branded the 40-year-old “deluded” for his comments after the north London derby.
Speaking to Sky Sports on Thursday (12 May), Arteta claimed a “beautiful game was destroyed” by referee Paul Tierney and his assistants.
He refused to elaborate further, stating he would be “suspended for six months” if he was honest with his comments.
Tottenham were awarded a penalty and Rob Holding was sent off in the first half of Spurs’ 3-0 win.
Whelan insisted the Arsenal players, not the officials, were to blame for the result.
Asked if Arteta could really have any complaints, Whelan told Football Insider’s Russell Edge: “No. He’s deluded.
“There’s one thing sticking up for your players, but there’s another about just being honest about it and going: ‘Yeah, it was silly. He lost his composure in a big game.’
“If Holding hadn’t have got a yellow, it could have easily been a red for dangerous play. I’ve got no sympathy for Mikel Arteta there. Sometimes you can overprotect your players and it makes you look a little bit silly when you’re doing interviews at the end.
“I don’t think he’s got any arguments with the two yellow cards. There’s no argument with the result. He’s just got to get on with it, to be honest.
“Stop digging out referees when it’s not their problem. It’s your player that got sent off. From the referee’s point of view, he didn’t have a choice. He had to do the right thing and it was clear to see for everybody.”
In other news, Arsenal idol ‘amazed’ by journalist’s Thomas Partey update – ‘One thing I do know…’