The only time Arsene Wenger ever lost him cool in front of the Arsenal dressing room did not come after a derby defeat or title near miss, Martin Keown has revealed.
Indeed it was the relatively innocuous opening game of the 2000-01 season, a 1-0 defeat at Sunderland, that caused Wenger to lose his cool. Indeed Keown related that the Arsenal manager “let out a shriek” as he bemoaned his side’s failure to convert a mountain of chances.
Former Arsenal striker Niall Quinn got the only goal at the Stadium of Light in a match that saw Patrick Vieira sent off in the last minutes of the second half for a foul on Darren Williams.
“Wenger didn’t like to show his anger in front of the players, though I did see him lose it once when I was the first in the dressing room,” Keown told the Daily Mail.
“It was the first game of the 2000-01 season and we lost 1-0 at the Stadium of Light through a lucky deflection, despite having about 30 shots on goal. After seeing all his pre-season preparation go down the drain like this, Wenger took aim at the plastic skip with our kit in, letting out a shriek as he kicked it!
“Even after I clashed with Ruud van Nistelrooy at Old Trafford in 2003 [Keown was sent off in a 0-0 draw during Arsenal’s Invincible season], he didn’t fly off the handle.
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“I spoke to him and admitted I had taken it too far - he accepted it and we drew a line under the whole issue. Though David Dein wanted me to take the rap for the whole thing, which I didn’t do!”
Wenger’s frustration with the result extended beyond the dressing room and he intimidated that a Sunderland player had deliberately attempted to get Vieira sent off. The Black Cats’ manager Peter Reid dismissed the suggestion as “c***”.
The manager’s fury evidently prompted a reaction from Arsenal players, who went unbeaten in their next 11 league games. However a disappointing run from mid-November to early January cost Wenger dearly as Manchester United claimed the title by 10 points.
