Emery calls for calm at Arsenal and 'respect' after fan shoves Smalling
Unai Emery called for Arsenal to keep their composure in the Premier League run-in, after watching them jump to fourth place in the table after a 2-0 home win over Manchester United.
The Spanish manager also spoke of how more ‘respect’ must be given by supporters, after a fan invaded the pitch and confronted United’s Chris Smalling – the same day that Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish was assaulted by a fan during the derby match against Birmingham City.
Emery added that he “did not want” to see that behaviour and Arsenal released a statement strongly condemning the supporter at the Emirates. The attack on Smalling occurred after Arsenal had scored their second goal – the defender was unhurt and the individual was arrested and escorted from the field.
“We would like to apologise to Chris and Manchester United, and are pleased that [the spectator] was apprehended and arrested,” read the statement. “We will be working closely with the Metropolitan Police in their investigation. The individual will also be banned from Arsenal matches home and away. Our matchday staff receive ongoing training on managing incidents such as this.”
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer also condemned the incident. The caretaker United manager, who tasted defeat in the league for the first time in his tenure as his team slipped to fifth, predicted that the race for the Champions League qualifying spots would “go to the wire,” and Emery knows that mentality will be key.
Only four points now separate third-placed Tottenham from sixthplaced Chelsea – and the latter have a game in hand.
Emery said: “When we were struggling in the table with more points difference, we stayed balanced and now, after this victory, we can be positive but we won’t change our idea – which is to think game by game. We are happy today but Chelsea is with us, and so are United and Tottenham.
“Our last matches are all difficult and being consistent is very important. At the moment, I think we are playing confidently in each match and today we showed everybody that. But we must be calm, be patient and continue improving. Controlling emotion is very important. Keeping this consistency in our mind is very important.”
United created a handful of chances while Romelu Lukaku and Fred hit the woodwork, leaving Solskjaer to lament an opportunity missed. He was also unhappy at Jon Moss’s decision to award a penalty against Fred following a challenge on Alexandre Lacazette. Even Emery said the decision was “soft”. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored to put Arsenal in charge at 2-0.
“Today is the lowest we have been because we lost and missed the chance to put pressure on Spurs,” Solskjaer said. “We have won games we have not deserved to win and today we lost a game we did not deserve to lose. We created five big chances and hit the woodwork twice. I also don’t think it was a penalty. Jon Moss might be disappointed when he sees it again.”