Arsene Wenger and Arsenal Slammed by Monaco Boss Leonardo Jardim After 2nd Leg...
The French side lost Tuesday's return fixture 2-0 but qualified thanks to their 3-1 win in London, and as reported by The Independent's Sam Wallace, Jardim decided to vent some frustrations afterwards.
Wenger apparently refused to shake his hand after Arsenal's first-leg defeat in England, and even though the Frenchman's return to Monaco was one of the top storylines of Tuesday's match, Jardim returned the favour:In the first leg when I wanted to thank Arsene and shake his hand and it’s true that Arsene didn’t shake my hand. So even though Monaco did everything to make life comfortable for Arsenal tonight I decided not to thank . In the first leg when I wanted to thank Arsene and shake his hand and it’s true that Arsene didn’t shake my hand. So even though Monaco did everything to make life comfortable for Arsenal tonight I decided not to thank him.
Arsenal were really happy to play Monaco as we were supposed to be one of the weakest teams. We qualified from pot four. All the teams in the last 16 wanted to play against Monaco. Maybe Arsenal thought they had qualified already.I put a lot of value on what my players did tonight. We were not expected to reach the quarter-finals so we should give all was credit to the players. They made this possible. I think it was disrespectful [of Wenger not to shake his hand after the first leg]. Right now we’re celebrating and we think Arsenal did not show enough respect during the first leg. The comments shocked the press room, as up until that point, just about everyone had praised Wenger and the fantastic work he did while he was in charge of Monaco between 1987 and 1994. The Guardian's Daniel Taylor noticed the sudden change of atmosphere:The 3-1 defeat at the Emirates Stadium was one of the most disappointing results of Arsenal's season, as Monaco simply outplayed the favoured Gunners in front of their own fans.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's late goal had given Wenger's men some hope, but to the despair of nearly everyone in attendance, a loss of concentration restored Monaco's two-goal advantage just minutes later, as Yannick Ferreira-Carrasco was given a clear path on goal. The late setback sucked the air out of the Emirates, and one can only assume Wenger was just as desperate. Making sure you shake the opposing manager's hand may just be the last thing on your mind at that moment.
After all, the defeat all but ensured Arsenal's fate of a fifth straight Champions League exit during the round of 16, and while the Gunners have been in fine form lately, some fans continue to call for Wenger's head. TV personality Piers Morgan remains among the most vocal:Bleacher Report's James McNicholas also had to lay some of the blame for the early exit with the manager:Wenger doesn't have to fear for his job, but yet another early exit from Europe's biggest club tournament doesn't help his case. Like Jardim stated, Monaco were supposed to be one of the easiest draws, making this loss all the more disappointing.
Mind you, Jardim wasn't the only manager to fire some parting shots at their opponents on Tuesday; as reported by BBC Sport, Wenger himself didn't hold back, either:Jardim's comments come across as a bit childish, and he could just as easily have proven himself to be the better man by shaking Wenger's hand after the match and never mentioning the lack of a handshake in London during his post-match press conference.
Tuesday's match wasn't overly aggressive or mean-spirited—there was simply no need to engage in some verbal warfare once the tie was over.
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