ESPN pundit Craig Burley has had a go at Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta – not for celebrating but for standing too close to the touchline.
The Gunners have been in the headlines over the last few days for all the wrong reasons. Many people have refused to give Arsenal any credit for their performance against Liverpool. Instead, they’ve been far too focused on what Arteta does in and around his technical area.
ESPN pundit Craig Burley criticises Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta
Mikel Arteta produced an absolute masterclass when Arsenal beat Liverpool on Sunday.
The £158,000-a-week (GiveMeSport) Spaniard got his tactics spot on and Jurgen Klopp had no answer to how Arteta set his side out to get the job done.
Since the win, however, the likes of Jamie Carragher, Chris Sutton and Richard Keys have been going on and on about Arteta’s celebrations.
Now, Craig Burley has joined the party, but he has a slightly different issue with Arteta. The pundit claimed that he has no problem with the Arsenal boss’ celebrations, but he’s furious about the Spaniard standing way too close to the touchline when the ball is in play.
He said on ESPN FC: “I don’t have a problem with Arteta celebrating a goal, I don’t have a problem with any manager celebrating a goal outside the technical area. Klopp, as Mario mentioned, has done it many times, so I would find it difficult for him to have a grievance with it.
“Where I do have a problem, and it continues to happen and I think Arteta is the worst, is during the… look I’m all for a manager going and running and celebrating. That is the time to leave your technical area.
“The other 89 minutes or whatever it is, I do not like Mikel Arteta or any other manager stood that far from the sidelines when the game’s going down that side, and he’s 10 yards outside his technical area.
“That’s where I’ve got a problem. I don’t have a problem with the manager celebrating but I do have a problem when the match is going on, with managers and particularly him, he’s the worst, continually being a long way out of the technical area.
“And by the way, that’s not the biggest problem. The biggest problem is he’s got his toes on the touchline while the play’s going on.
“Now that’s not right and I think any manager now overstepping this mark – look we’ve either got a technical area folks or we don’t – when the game is going on, if you’re stepping outside the technical area, you get three strikes. Go and sit in the stands, sod off, go on, go up there.”
Arteta needs to ignore his critics
Football punditry is getting a bit boring these days, isn’t it?
Very few pundits actually analyse the game. A lot more importance is given to meaningless factors like celebrations, a manager’s behaviour and even where he stands.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, unfortunately, seems to be enemy number one for many people, and irrespective of what he does, there are some who take issue.
Burley may have a point here because a manager being too close to the touchline could endanger a player. However, we just feel it’s unfair that most of the attention is on things like that and not on the brilliant football that was played.
Arsenal fans absolutely love Arteta and that should be all that matters to the Gunners boss. He should just ignore the rest of the noise – we’re sure he’s doing that already.