By Myles Palmer
The Observer’s Amy Lawrence introduces tonight’s Arsene Who? film on BBC4 at 8.30.
This week’s furore should ensure good viewing figures for the programme, which features Philippe Auclair, the London correspondent for France Football.
Haven’t seen Philippe on TV before.
He is very close to Arsene, knows football inside out, and is an accomplished writer and radio broadcaster.
Philippe is a charming, good-looking, civilised gentleman, so I’m looking forward to seeing what he has to say tonight.
A BBC girl, Eleanor Logan, called me twice about appearing on the programme. I was out the second time she phoned.
But I don’t come over that well on radio, let alone TV, so I didn’t mind missing out.
And what I would have said might not have fitted into the programme.
TEN SECONDS of argy-bargy on Sunday has turned into five days of headlines and lots of talk about how the FA will punish Arsenal.
The media run football, setting the FA’s agenda.
It suits the media to over-react, to exaggerate, to keep stories going, to drag out every old goalkeeper for Man United, anyone willing to get on the phone from South Africa and slag off Arsenal.
Vieira was daft to give Van Nastelrooy the chance to produce the pantomime that got him sent off.
He should have just stayed on the turf, holding his back, milking the foul.
But it’s easy to say that. It’s easy to say and write a lot of things.
This rumpus is boring, so I have ignored most of it.
Comparisons are being made with 1990, when AFC fined George Graham £10,000 for not controlling his players.
What the hacks don’t know is this : the idea was George’s.
George suggested that the club fine him, so that Arsenal would be seen to do the right thing.
LAST NIGHT I got sick of watching the UEFA Cup.
I saw bits of Liverpool, Southampton, and Coventry v Spurs, but none of it was great football.
So I started flicking though the channels and I came to BBC3, where the progamme was titled Match of the Day.
A live game I did not know was being screened.
Man City v Lokoren of Belgium and City were 2-1 down and it was at an interesting stage, so I watched that.
ANELKA was fantastic.
A man now, 24,a magnificent striker.
City pulled back to 2-2 and the Chinaman, Jihai, got a legit penalty and there was a delay before the kick was taken.
Then supercool Anelka showed Henry how to take a penalty.
He blasted it, sending the keeper the wrong way, and City won 3-2.
If Anelka had stayed at Arsenal he would now have 50 caps and 25 goals for France.
BOBBY ROBSON brings Newcastle to Highbury on Friday night.
Bobby managed Romario at PSV and thinks that he can manage bad boys.
But he now collects them.
A team with three players as volatile as Robert, Dyer and Bellamy should not sign Bowyer and Woodgate, surely?
Still, Newcastle thrashed Dutch club NAC Breda 5-0 and Bellamy at last proved his fitness after two knee operations
Titus Bramble also scored.
Arsenal enquired for TB in 2001 and Ipswich quoted £15 million. He had just had a good season.
After a bad season, Bramble was sold to Newcastle in July 2002 for £4.5 million.
And I later learned that that deal was done and dusted in July 2001.
25 September 2003.