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Mikel Arteta has defended his reaction to Max Dowman’s red card against Fleetwood Town on Tuesday and warned the 16-year-old he is not in “Disneyland” following his controversial sending off.
Arteta appeared to be angry with the teenager as he made his way off the pitch following his red card. Dowman kicked out after a dangerous tackle from behind from Fleetwood’s Harrison Neal in the 85th minute of the shock defeat in the Carabao Cup.
Arteta said he had warned Dowman to be ready for heavy challenges from the League Two side and had urged him not to react to physical treatment.
But the manager was criticised in some quarters for his public admonishing of Dowman as he left the pitch and went down the tunnel, with former Arsenal player Paul Merson claiming that he would not have given a more senior player such a furious dressing down in the same circumstances.
“I haven’t seen the reaction to my reaction, whether that’s positive or negative,” Arteta said when asked if he was surprised by the criticism he has received. “I understand but you need to understand the context, the relationship I have with him and what we discussed before we went out.
“If you see the reaction from my mother and father with me sometimes, you’d say ‘you don’t like that reaction’, but for me it was the best reaction ever as it enabled me to be who I am. But you want to see the best and most beautiful reaction? You want to see the reaction of his team-mates when they have to play with 10 men.
“What do you expect. That’s the level and that’s the reaction. Whether it’s right or wrong, that’s the reaction. And the reaction when I don’t win, I’m —— off, big time. This is the environment and the reality.
“We are not in Disneyland, we are in the Premier League. We look after him so much but we are also demanding as he needs to earn the right to play otherwise what are the rest of the boys going to tell me? You need to be fair, as well.”
Dowman was sent off while playing for England’s Under-21s earlier this month and Arteta explained his disappointment with the forward stemmed from him not following his pre-match instructions.
Arteta had warned Dowman to be ready for tackles and not to react to them, but he insisted there are no issues with the teenager – who became the Premier League’s youngest-ever goalscorer last season.
“My reaction [during the match against Fleetwood] was in the heat [of the moment] and of frustration as I know the consequences for that and especially for Max,” Arteta said ahead of Sunday’s trip to Liverpool.
“It’s something we discussed just before we went out because it’s not the first time it’s happened as it happened earlier this month with England.
“It will continue to happen with the way he plays and the way he attracts opponents. We have to be protective of him as he is 16 but also very straight with him about what to expect from him towards the team and the club.
“I had a talk with him yesterday. There are no issues at all. I’ve done it. That’s why I’m so protective of these things and young players as we have all made these mistakes.
“We know how much you can get punished. And what happens next. It’s not the first time, so we need to put an end to it very quickly.”
Arsenal failed in their bid to overturn Dowman’s three-game ban with the Football Association confirming they had dismissed claims of both “wrongful dismissal and excessive punishment”.
Arteta said he was disappointed that Arsenal’s appeal was dismissed. The club want Dowman, who is an excellent dribbler, to be protected from physical challenges from defenders.
“His reaction was minimal related to the [tackle],” Arteta said. “It is what it is. We had a good argument on the table. Not only on the action which is so evident but also the context of the player and his age. It could have been really bad. We are lucky he hasn’t got a broken foot.”