I SEE NO IMPROVEMENT IN REFEREES, FUMES WENGER

ARSENE WENGER railed against ‘untouchable’ referees after being enraged by Mike Dean’s decision to award West Bromwich a late penalty that denied Arsenal victory. The Arsenal manager is angry at standards of officiating in the Premier League, having lobbied for the role to become professional in the early 2000s only to see ‘no improvement’. He pointed to the fact that not one English referee will go to the World Cup in Russia. Dean pointed to the spot when the ball hit Calum Chambers’ arm, infuriating Arsenal who insisted the contact was accidental. Jay Rodriguez converted the 89th-minute penalty to equalise, and Wenger fumed: ‘It wasn’t a penalty. It was not a deliberate handball. ‘When you are as close as that, it’s impossible to play football. ‘Where do you put your hands? You have no pockets in your shorts. The referee hasn’t seen it. ‘That’s my opinion, he will tell you that he has seen it. I don’t want to waste my time with them, we have to live with the decision and go to the next game. I’m angry because we have seen the same things again. I did fight very hard for the referees to become professional many years ago. But I see no improvement. ‘There are two countries in Europe where you have professional referees, in Italy and in England, and not one English referee will go to the World Cup. ‘But everything is all right. We cannot say a word against it because they’re untouchable. That is the truth. It’s not only me that judges them.’ Petr Cech was booked for protesting the decision and said: ‘Every time we meet with refs prior to a season and it comes to the point about when the player is close to the ball and has no chance to react it is never a penalty. I asked the referee why he changes this decision. I was not rude. It disappoints me that he said nothing when I asked. ‘I expect he answers in a normal way, not for him to give me a yellow card and say nothing.’ Alan Pardew concurred with his opposite number. ‘I’d have been very upset if it was given against me, I can understand Arsene being very angry about that,’ said the West Brom boss. Arsenal players made a point of celebrating Alexis Sanchez’s goal together after Thierry Henry had suggested there was a divide in the dressing room due to a split reaction to one of the Chilean’s goals at Crystal Palace. Wenger said: ‘It was never a problem inside. There are people who want to create problems. I don’t listen to what (Henry) says. These people are paid to talk and it’s difficult always to talk and say things that are true and intelligent.’ Manchester City are expected to renew their interest in Sanchez but Wenger would only say ‘we play on Wednesday’ when asked if the forward had played in his last Arsenal game.