- Arsenal legend Ian Wring has admitted he would be ‘locked up’ by the Premier League as the forward shared a clip of his celebration during West Ham career
- New regulations by the association may punish players for mocking celebrations
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off! We need Arsenal’s personality! This needle is what the Premier League is all about
Arsenal icon Ian Wright has slammed the Premier League crackdown after it was revealed that the association is planning to punish footballers for ‘critical or mocking’ celebrations.
Several players were previously left without yellow cards during the 2024-25 campaign after they reportedly aimed to inflame the opposition team or their fans.
Things started moving faster after the Gunners prospect Myles Lewis-Skelly imitated Erling Haaland’s famous meditation pose, a gesture which later received a series of criticism from high-profile figures such as Jamie Carragher and Alan McInally.
Following the 5-1 game at the Emirates Stadium, the Premier League’s chief football officer, Tony Scholes, said: ‘There’s a balance. I think we all like to see celebrations.
‘Some of the celebrations have been very funny, entertaining, but there’s a line. Once it crosses over into mockery or criticism then we would need to deal with it.’
However, the former Arsenal star responded to the news with a clip of his cheeky celebration after his goal for West Ham against Southampton in 1998, accompanied by the message: ‘They would be calling for me to be locked up!!!’ with laughing emojis.
Former Arsenal star Ian Wright has hit out at the Premier League crackdown after it was revealed that they can punish players for ‘critical or mockery’ celebrations
The news emerged after 18-year-old Myles Lewis-Skelly imitated Erling Haaland’s meditation pose after scoring his goal at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday
In 1998, Wright and Neil Ruddock imitated Sheffield Wednesday forward Paolo di Canio, who shoved over referee Paul Alcock a week earlier.
Leicester captain Jamie Vardy celebrated his goal against Tottenham by pointing to his Premier League badge
Last month, Ivan Toney (left) and Neal Maupay (right) mocked Spurs’ star James Maddison by copying his darts throw celebration
‘VAR already taking away the celebrations and now this! KMT’ [kiss my teeth].
In this iconic moment, Wright and Neil Ruddock imitated Sheffield Wednesday forward Paolo di Canio, who shoved over referee Paul Alcock just a week earlier.
Wright pretended to show Ruddock a red card while the defender shoved him over, which funnily caused the forward to fall to the ground.
However, now the Premier League will monitor goal celebrations, and players can be punished if they consider their gestures are damaging the game’s reputation.
Leicester striker Jamie Vardy is another player whose mockery celebrations are well-documented by the fans after he took another aim at Tottenham last month.
The team’s captain scored a goal and then ran to the Spurs’ stands to point to his Premier League badge.
Previously, James Maddison and Neal Maupay had an on-field row after the forward copied the Englishman’s darts throw celebration alongside Ivan Toney.
The gesture provoked a heated exchange during the game’s last minutes and a series of social media posts from both players.
