Crazy Toon: Newcastle United midfielder Cheik
Tiote celebrates scoring their equaliser
As an incredible day of football produced a record 41
Premier League goals, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger vented his
frustration over his team's astonishing four-goal collapse at
Newcastle.
Wenger refused to condemn his midfielder, Abou Diaby, for
the retaliation which earned him a match-changing red card and
claimed that Newcastle's Joey Barton should have been sent off
instead for his challenge on the French international
midfielder.
'I cannot measure how angry I
am,' said Wenger, after seeing his side's 4-0 lead reduced to a 4-4
draw. 'I believe Barton was very lucky to stay on the pitch because
of the tackle on Diaby. The sending-off was the turning point. We
have to take it on the chin but it doesn't help our push for the
title.
'Diaby is very disappointed.
It's better not to talk to him. It's a shame because he had a great
first half. He has been injured so many times from bad tackles that
he lost it a bit quickly. Certainly the tackle provoked his
reaction.'
Newcastle manager Alan Pardew
defended Barton's challenge, saying: 'It was a proper, honest
challenge. I've seen it two or three times and there is nothing
wrong with it. He goes for the ball and he wins it clean. He's
aggressive in the challenge and he takes a bit of the player after
he's won the ball. This is football, guys. This is how it's played
in the Premier League. I had absolutely no problem with the
challenge.'
Barton claimed the red card
was deserved for Diaby's 'lack of disclipline'.
He added: 'There was no need
to him to react the way he did, especially with them 4-0 up. Arsene
sees what he wants to see and doesn't see what he
doesn't.'
Both managers agreed that the
game will be remembered on Tyneside for years.
Arsenal built a 4-0 lead
through Theo Walcott, Johan Djourou and two from Robin van Persie
before Diaby saw red after the interval. Two penalties by Barton
either side of a strike from Leon Best set Newcastle up for Cheik
Tiote's long-range equaliser.
Foursome: Arsenal's Robin Van Persie makes it 4-0 to
Arsenal at Newcastle
Pardew said: 'This was
our day. When you're 4-0 down after 26 minutes and you haven't made
a challenge you have to fear the worst. And I did fear the
worst.'
Wenger added: 'It was a game
the fans here will remember for a very long time. I was surprised
by both penalty decisions but I'm not a referee.'
The controversy at St James'
Park was one drama and Newcastle's comeback will go down as one of
the greatest in living memory.
It might not have come in as
important a game as Liverpool's in the 2005 Champions League final
against AC Milan but the scale of their task at half-time was still
on a par.
