Robin van Persie was kicked, battered and booed in the final of the
Amsterdam Tournament last night, but he had the last laugh by
scoring in the 88th minute to secure the trophy for Arsenal and
perhaps prove that the young side will stand up for themselves this
season.
The Arsenal striker has never been popular in this city, having
played for Feyenoord, and he was a marked man from the off.
He had to be restrained after an hour when he was head to head on
the pitch with Ajax defender Thomas Vermaelen after what appeared
to be an elbow in the face from the Belgian international.
And moments after he scored with his right foot, Van Persie was
booted out of the game by Ajax midfielder John Heitinga. He was
kicked on the same foot which he broke six months ago and had to be
carried off on a stretcher.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger was so angry about the behaviour of
the Ajax players that he confronted Ajax manager Henk ten Cate in
front of the dugout.
Wenger said: "I was disappointed with the tackle on Robin van
Persie but at least it looks like he is all right. I was
disappointed with some of the other challenges, too. Ajax went a
little overboard. It helped us to know that there would be
suspensions in England if we reacted badly."
But Ajax boss Ten Cate was unrepentant. He said: "Why should I say
sorry? Arsenal have this stuff in the Premiership every week.Do
they think it is easy when they come here? I actually think
football in England is rougher and tougher. I have no problems with
the way my players behaved.
"They were too good for us.They are on a different level but I
cannot believe how Arsenal approach their games. Wenger only plays
with one striker. For a club with so much money and great players,
I think that is not the bravest attitude of their manager."
Ajax midfielder Heitinga said: 'Arsenal are too good at this moment
for us, and probably for many clubs in Europe.They will be serious
contenders for the English title, even with so many young
players.
They showed they have real class, because we did rough them up
tonight. 'I said sorry to Robin, because I did not mean to kick him
so badly. I was relieved when I saw he could walk again after he
was stretchered off.
"We are team-mates in the Dutch national side. He showed that he is
the star player now for Arsenal. We could not stop him."
The Ajax defenders could only stop Van Persie by hanging on his
shirt, kicking him from behind and elbowing him. It led to several
free-kicks for Arsenal. Van Persie was brought down for the first
time on the edge of the penalty box after 10 minutes.The kick was
taken by Tomas Rosicky, who saw his deflected shot blocked by by
Ajax goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg.
Only eight minutes later,Van Persie again after he was fouled
was awarded a free-kick and produced a wonderful lob over the Ajax
defence,to Kolo Toure.The Arsenal defender should have scored when
he volleyed the ball straight on to the body of Stekelenburg.
After 26 minutes the Arsenal bench jumped up when Van Persie was
brought down on his way to goal.The Dutchman had a clear run but
defender Jurgen Colin used a ferocious tackle to stop him. To the
amazement of every Arsenal player, Dutch referee Kevin Blom only
handed out a yellow card, where a red one would have been more
appropriate. Emmanuel Eboue protested so strongly he was booked for
dissent.
Van Persie did not hide his frustrations in Dutch to fellow
countryman Blom, either, but he escaped a booking. Clearly agitated
by the way Ajax players were behaving and Colin in particular, Van
Persie sought his revenge before half time when he tackled Colin
from behind.This time Blom showed no mercy and jotted down Van
Persie's name.
This is not the first time the Amsterdam Tournament has created
controversy. Last year Manchester United's Wayne Rooney and Paul
Scholes were sent off in Amsterdam and therefore missed the start
of the English season. Rooney was suspended for four matches by the
FA on his return home.
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