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Arsene Wenger: Arsenal boss gets touchline ban after admitting 'abusive' behaviour

Last updated on .From the section Arsenalcomments635

Wenger faces an FA charge for behaviour at the draw with West Brom on 31 December and more scrutinty for comments in the first game around the New Year
Arsene Wenger was charged with misconduct after the New Year's Eve draw at West Brom

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has been given a three-match touchline ban and fined £40,000 for his behaviour in the referee's changing room after Sunday's game against West Brom.

The Football Association said Wenger admitted "his language and behaviour was abusive, improper and questioned the integrity" of referee Mike Dean.

The Frenchman was angered by the award of an 89th-minute penalty for handball against Arsenal's Calum Chambers.

West Brom scored to earn a 1-1 draw.

Wenger will serve the first game of his punishment on Sunday in the FA Cup third-round tie at Nottingham Forest.

He will also be confined to the stands for the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final at Chelsea and the visit to Bournemouth in the Premier League.

Nottingham Forest were quick off the mark with a cheeky hospitality invitation to Wenger
Nottingham Forest were quick off the mark with a cheeky hospitality invitation to Wenger

At his news conference earlier on Friday, the Arsenal boss said he served football with "honesty and integrity".

"From what I've heard and seen in tunnels and dressing rooms down the years, I'm surprised and shocked to be charged," he said.

In a separate case, Wenger has been asked to respond to the FA about comments he made about refereeing decisions both before and after Wednesday's 2-2 draw with Chelsea in the league.

A frustrated Wenger called decisions made against Arsenal a "concerning coincidence".

Part of his anger stemmed from a penalty the away side won when Eden Hazard was deemed to have been fouled by Hector Bellerin by referee Anthony Taylor - a decision branded "farcical".

The FA wants his explanation of these comments by 18:00 GMT on Tuesday, 9 January.

"I have been asked [to respond] and I maintain what I said, 100%," Wenger added. "Nothing has changed. I try to serve this game with honesty and integrity and when I have something to say, I say it.

"I respect everyone's opinion. I feel it was a yellow card for Hazard. I have the right to have an opinion."

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Penalties ‘concerning coincidence for me’ - Wenger

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635 comments

  • Comment posted by Tralfamadorean, at 15:58 5 Jan 2018

    Referees deserve respect, but cannot be above properly expressed criticism.

  • Comment posted by The Hearse, at 16:01 5 Jan 2018

    And I assume Mike Dean will also be sitting out a few games given recent poor performance. Granted Wenger may have spoken out of term, but referees should be more accountable for their professional performances as any of us would.

  • Comment posted by JamesRW, at 16:01 5 Jan 2018

    Meanwhile Mike Dean gets away with another one...

  • Comment posted by j4ipod94, at 16:01 5 Jan 2018

    I'm a Utd fan and i have sympathy for Wenger in this regard.

    Refereeing has been poor in general for the last 5 years and deteriorating further. Not much is being done to improve refereeing.

    look at Mike Dean... performing like him in any other profession would get you sacked

  • Comment posted by DanT, at 16:02 5 Jan 2018

    Wenger gives pretty constructive criticism on the whole. Seems excessive and I can't help think an element of the punishment is an abuse of power, where instead the officials should be listening and improving standards.

  • Comment posted by Chrispy Trini, at 16:01 5 Jan 2018

    A lot of the referees out there need to lift their game. I am with Wenger on this. that last decision was never a penalty. and the ref Dean has history in this. Wenger reacted extremely, but the decision was , as everyone agrees exceptionally poor. Referees need to be punished also, they seem to always be above the law. Thats the problem. they also need to get fines.

  • Comment posted by JimmyTheBrain, at 15:56 5 Jan 2018

    And when Mourinho gets the same punishment at some point, he will say, "no other manager is treated like this."

  • Comment posted by Penelope Poopsalot, at 16:02 5 Jan 2018

    Merely vented the frustration most fans feel when witnessing poor refereeing - but he shouldn't be entering the referee's changing room

  • Comment posted by Emkay, at 16:01 5 Jan 2018

    4. Posted by Idiotbox on
    1 minute ago

    Wenger changed the whole way footballers looked at theirselves and nutrition/training etc. He has been and continues to be a brilliant asset to Premier League football. The only reason he has not won more trophies is because of the dodgy way that Chelsea and Man City are financed.

  • Comment posted by AntonP, at 16:05 5 Jan 2018

    I think Mike Dean needs at least a 3 match ban

  • Comment posted by D1710948329944, at 16:08 5 Jan 2018

    it wasn't a penalty. simple. i was there. i'm a west brom fan. wegner is right. referee was appalling. wegner should be allowed to express that view. fa undermine their own credibility in supporting a dodgy, self-serving, attention-seeking ref. wrong decision. #BoingBoing

  • Comment posted by BorisTheHangman, at 16:05 5 Jan 2018

    Anything being done about Mike Dean ?

  • Comment posted by User0156163797, at 16:06 5 Jan 2018

    Don't bad mouth the FA's referees, the numerous old men in the FA don't like criticism or change, or anything new.

    The FA is the problem, the standard of referees is very poor, we should have video technology and bad referees should be held to account and removed.

    In this case Wenger was right.

  • Comment posted by Walks619, at 17:30 5 Jan 2018

    I absolutely despise the FA / Premier League sometimes. What do they expect?

    They force managers and players to be interviewed moments after some shocking decisions have cost them points and say things in the heat of the moment.

    Referees however, get to hide away and referee another game 3 days later with no repercussions what-so-ever.

    Don't force interviews, or hold referees to account!

  • Comment posted by Wakefield Owl, at 16:19 5 Jan 2018

    Perhaps Wenger deserved his ban and fine but the bigger issue here is the standard of refereeing. There has been a catalogue of poor decisions this seasons and I don't mean ones that are proven incorrect by slow motion replay. The Tottenham goal at Swansea the other night being an example of an easy decision got wrong.

  • Comment posted by Tykesabroad, at 16:17 5 Jan 2018

    Mike Dean needs a rest too after that decision! If that was a penalty then why not give 3 or 4 every game? I'm no Arsenal supporter but would just like referees to up their game which they are not seemingly capable of at present. Perhaps the referees think the fans come to watch them as they act like it?

  • Comment posted by Alex Cropley-The Legacy, at 16:15 5 Jan 2018

    Thank goodness that somebody
    in this case Mr Wenger is trying to hold referees to account.

    Clearly the BBC and the newspapers either can't or won't and take the easy option to mock his style and efforts to highlight recent examples.

    For a sport awash with Sky money and ever rising transfer fees is it beyond the realms of the FA
    to actually try and improve standards

  • Comment posted by Guru, at 16:00 5 Jan 2018

    Standard of refereeing has gone down drastically over the years.

    We seem to discuss referee decisions after every match where as ideally we should be focusing on performance of players.

    FA Officials needs to have look at what managers have to day in this regard rather than charging them for misconduct every time.

    That said, Wenger do whine and moan about referees a lot these days.

  • Comment posted by Richard, at 16:18 5 Jan 2018

    Absolute disgrace. What needs to be addressed is the abysmal standard of match officials.

  • Comment posted by Border Collie, at 16:05 5 Jan 2018

    I hope the £40,000 fine goes towards improving refs at their jobs and using all possible technology to get their decisions right. There is so much pressure and money in football nowadays, something needs to be done quickly to improve the overall quality of refereeing

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