Wenger fumes at refs

MANCHESTER. — Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger suggested referees were over-protected “like the lions in the zoo” after complaining “two off-side goals” had accounted for his team in Sunday’s 2-1 English Premier League defeat at Manchester City.

Theo Walcott gave Arsenal a fifth-minute lead, but Leroy Sane equalised early in the second half, getting the benefit of the doubt in a tight offside call to run in and score from David Silva’s pass.

Raheem Sterling struck a 71st-minute winner, but Wenger felt Silva’s attempt to play the ball in front of goalkeeper Petr Cech should have seen the goal ruled out.

“We conceded two off-side goals, which is very difficult to accept in a game of that stature,” Wenger told his post-match press conference.

“As it is well known, the referees are protected very well, that is right, like the lions in the zoo.

“So we have to live with those decisions. I want them to be safe. If they could make the right decision, it would be even better.”

When asked to explain his comment, he added: “It is too long a subject – I do not want to make refs the subject of the press conference. It is right they are safe and protected but if they make right decisions even better. It is difficult to lose a game of that stature on two off-side goals.

“I feel enough is enough for us because we got some bad decisions for the whole season and today I looked at the goals – both are off-side. The second one is five yards off-side. But what can I do? We have to live with that and look at ourselves and analyse why we lost the game.”

The clear inference of what Wenger is saying is that referees are not punished enough for making mistakes by being removed from the match list the following weekend.

But Wenger admitted his team – who had gone ahead through Theo Walcott’s fifth minute strike – had “dropped” their mental and physical levels in the second half when they were blown away by resurgent City and then blamed their fixture schedule.

He added: “We have played four games away from home out of the last five, we had one day less recovery at Everton after everyone else. I feel there were plenty of teams who don’t play in Europe, big teams, who could have played on Tuesday and we could have played on Wednesday.

“I feel we dropped physically and mentally in the second half, in the first half we looked always dangerous and sharp. We have had a horrible week and what is worse, out of two good performances we get zero points and out of two leading positions, we lose two games. For a while we have not kept a clean sheet.

“If you want to play at the top you have to keep a clean sheet.”

Petr Cech admitted he was unsighted for City’s winner but did not know whether Silva was the man who blocked his view. “I have to say that there were players in front of the goal so I didn’t see the shot and there were people running across and I don’t know if one of them was David Silva or not,” he said.

Arsenal’s defeat was the second game in succession they had gone ahead, only to lose 2-1, having fallen to defeat in similar circumstances at Everton last Tuesday.

On that occasion, Wenger protested that Ashley Williams’ headed 86th-minute winner had stemmed from an erroneously awarded corner. — AFP.