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Arsene Wenger tells Jose Mourinho not to sit by him at coaches conference
We didn’t know Gretchen Wieners managed Arsenal.
Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Like a scene out of Mean Girls, Arsene Wenger told Jose Mourinho not to sit next to him during a recent coaches conference in Switzerland. Mourinho apparently showed up a little late for Alex Ferguson’s speech, and when he asked if he could sit in an empty seat by Wenger, was told “no, it isn’t possible” by the Arsenal manager.
Who’s responsible for starting this feud is certainly up for debate, as Wenger has done his fair share of moralizing about Arsenal playing the right way and Mourinho’s teams playing anti-football. But it’s indisputable that the recent unprompted pot-shots have come from Mourinho, who has called Wenger a “specialist in failure” and took shots at Arsenal in his first press conference as Manchester United manager.
Mourinho vs. Pep is the big on-pitch rivalry in the Premier League right now, while Mourinho vs. Ferguson is its greatest ever when it comes to actual soccer, but Mourinho vs. Wenger will always be the league’s greatest off-pitch rivalry.
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In the news
The Washington Spirit moved the national anthem up a few minutes to prevent Megan Rapinoe from protesting during it.
Antonio Conte says he’ll play David Luiz as a center back. (ESPN FC)
A week after signing him, Crystal Palace lost Loic Remy for two months. (Guardian)
A referee had to stop a game in Spain after being heckled with “go wash the dishes.” (AS)
Dimitri Payet should finally be ready to go at full speed for West Ham this week. (Mirror)
You should be reading
Nick Miller on Charlton fans protesting off the pitch problems while they improve on the pitch. (Guardian)
James Horncastle on Sassuolo winning fans and the respect of their peers in Serie A. (ESPN FC)
What happened on Wednesday
And NWSL highlights are here. (NWSL on YouTube)
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