Unai Emery has come under fire for failing to shake Mikel Arteta’s hand after Arsenal’s 4-1 pummeling of Aston Villa.
The Gunners struck four times in the second half on Wednesday night to claim a statement win at the Emirates, delivering a hammer blow to a Villa side who were subject to growing talk of a Premier League title challenge.
Arteta, who replaced Emery as Arsenal manager in December 2019, was clearly elated and immediately celebrated with his coaching staff on the touchline after the final whistle.
But this did not go down well with Emery, who appeared to shoot a disapproving glance in the direction of the Arsenal boss before walking straight down the tunnel.
By the time Arteta had left the embrace of his team, Emery had already disappeared, leaving the Arsenal boss looking visibly puzzled as he sought out his fellow countryman.
Emery, however, launched a staunch defence of his decision in the aftermath of the match, saying he could not wait on Arteta finishing his celebrations because it was ‘cold’.
Unai Emery defended his decision not to shake Mikel Arteta’s hand because it was ‘cold’
Arteta embraced his staff throughout the game and celebrated with them after the final whistle
‘It is simple,’ the Villa boss said in his post-match press conference. ‘You can watch. After I finish the match, my routine is always quick, I shake hands, and I go with my coaches, with my players to the dressing room.
‘I was waiting, I was waiting. He was happy, of course he was happy. He was with his coaches. And I decided to go inside. But for me it is no problem.’
Emery also told Sky Sports: ‘Always my routine is go to the opposition coach, shake hands and go inside. If he is not doing the same rule, I can’t wait… it was cold.’
The Villa boss’s explanations, however, did not wash with goading Arsenal fans online.
‘Brother was standing in the cold for 90 minutes but waiting for 10 seconds wasn’t possible lol,’ one wrote on X.
Another added: ‘That was a hard watch. I cringed. Why can’t he just be honest? He could’ve just said that emotions got the better of him. I’d understand that. This? Spineless. So cringe.’
A third branded Emery’s excuse as ‘rubbish’ and added that ‘he would’ve been sat there sipping tea if his side had won’.
Arteta, who hailed the ‘extraordinary’ performance of his team after the match, did not seem to have as much of a problem with the snub as some of the Arsenal support.
‘You saw it, but it’s OK,’ the Arsenal boss insisted after the match. ‘It’s all good. That is part of the game and it’s not unusual at all.’
Some Gunners fans even found themselves on the side of their former manager, suggesting that it was disrespectful for Arteta not to go straight to Emery before celebrating with his team.
Emery has come under fire from goading Arsenal fans who criticised the Spaniard’s decision
‘I might get attacked but honestly I don’t see a problem,’ one fan wrote online. ‘The nice thing to do from Arteta would’ve been to go directly to shake the ref and Emery’s hand before celebrating with his assistants.’
They added: ‘Unai doesn’t have to wait for him if he celebrates first [in my opinion]. Neither is in the wrong.’
The pressure was firmly on Arsenal to deliver a big result in their hunt for a first Premier League title in more than 20 years – with Villa on a run of 11 consecutive victories before arriving in north London – and they rose to the occasion.
Goals from Gabriel Magalhaes, Martin Zubimendi, Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Jesus had the Gunners’ four goals to the good, before Ollie Watkins’ injury time consolation strike.
Villa remain in 3rd-place after the bruising defeat, but the victory puts Arsenal six points ahead of Emery’s side and five ahead of Manchester City.
‘I’m so happy,’ Arteta said post-match. ‘We play every three days, and today we played an opponent that has won 11 games in a row.
‘They are a superb team, very difficult to play against, and we knew that we were going to have periods throughout the game.
‘We talked about emotionally how demanding it was going to be and we struggled in the first 10 minutes. Then we adjusted, got a bit more control. We didn’t manage to score and then in the second half we clicked.
‘We competed for everything much better. The timing was better and the individual goals were fulfilled in an extraordinary way, and we were so efficient in everything that we did.
‘Unlike in the last few games where we had so many big situations, today we were very prolific and accurate to make the difference.’
