Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: Arsenal, Manchester City, Jack Grealish, Premier League, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Ben White, Mikel Arteta
Alex Brotherton
Topics: Arsenal, Manchester City, Jack Grealish, Premier League, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Ben White, Mikel Arteta
Oleksandr Zinchenko was involved in an angry on-field altercation long before his recent bust up with Arsenal teammate Ben White.
Zinchenko and White clashed after the final whistle following Arsenal's 2-1 win against Nottingham Forest on Tuesday evening, and the pair had to be pulled apart by set-piece coach Nicolas Jover.
The disagreement stemmed from Zinchenko's role in Forest's late consolation goal; White was unhappy with his Ukrainian teammate for playing Gonzalo Montiel onside, who set up Taiwo Awoniyi to score with a header across the penalty area.
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After the game, Gunners manager Mikel Arteta played down the incident as his players, "pushing each other and not being happy with conceding nothing.
He told TNT Sports: "I love it. They are demanding more from each other. They are not happy with the way they conceded and they are just trying to resolve it.
"It got a bit heated. But that means that it’s enough. Playing the way we played the result has to be bigger and the clean sheet has to be there."
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Supporters will recall that this isn't the first time Zinchenko has lost his temper in the moments following the full-time whistle.
In January 2023 Arsenal lost 1-0 to Manchester City in the fourth round of the FA Cup. Zinchenko came off the bench in the second half at the Etihad Stadium and received a warm reception from supporters of his old team, having won four Premier League titles with the club.
At the final whistle the inverted full-back looked stoney-faced, and he was soon swarmed by his former teammates who teased him like a younger sibling.
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Zinchenko reacted angrily when the likes of Jack Grealish, Kyle Walker, Ilkay Gundogan and Joao Cancelo crowded around him, but he soon loosened up and congratulated his former teammates. The Ukrainian ended up swapping shirts with Walker as they left the field together.
A few months later, Zinchenko shot Grealish a stern look when the City star jokingly shoved him when the players emerged for the second half of the Community Shield at Wembley.
Zinchenko's latest on-field argument is a different situation, but he has shown before that he has a short fuse in the moments following a match.