Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has addressed a confrontation between midfielder Declan Rice and assistant coach Albert Stuivenberg.
Rice and Stuivenberg were caught on camera while engaged in a passionate discussion in the tunnel at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday.
Arsenal won the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final tie against Chelsea but emotions were running high as the teams came back out for the second half and England star Rice was right in the thick of it.
Arteta says Arsenal ‘issue has been settled’ after Chelsea drama
“The pair were seen in a heated exchange in the Stamford Bridge tunnel, with Rice clearly agitated, but Arteta assures that the issue has been settled.”
The manager was asked about the ‘animated disagreement’ when he spoke to reporters in his pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday’s Premier League fixture against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.
“All sorted, all good,” Arteta said. “The good thing is that by the time I found out, the problem was resolved so that’s very good.
Gabriel Magalhaes served as peacemaker while Rice appeared to express some forthright opinions before Stuivenberg stepped out of the tunnel. The pair looked to have made up by the end of the game.
Arsenal were a goal to the good at half time in the first leg and a Viktor Gyokeres goal four minutes into the second half surely helped to ease any tensions between the pitch and the dugout.
Martin Zubimendi scored in between two Alejandro Garnacho goals in a 3-2 Gunners win that puts them in the driving seat ahead of their home leg, making them favourites for a Wembley appearance in March.
The Gunners are at the start of a busy week and unity is required. On Saturday, they take on a Forest team expected to look to frustrate them from kick-off. If Manchester City beat Manchester United at lunchtime, Arsenal will be defending a three-point lead.
Tuesday’s visit to Inter Milan in their penultimate league phase match in the Champions League will be a rather less pressurised affair.
Arsenal have won all six of their European matches this season, putting them three points and goal difference clear at the top of the single table. They’re all but qualified for the round of 16, in which they’ll be seeded, and could confirm first place with a win in Milan depending on Bayern Munich’s result at PSV.
If their positioning in all four competitions comes at the cost of a little tension in spicy moments, you’d have to think Arteta is just fine with that arrangement for now.
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