Journalist Charles Watts has now hit out against the press for the reaction to something one Arsenal player did against Tottenham Hotspur.
Arsenal defender Ben White has been in the headlines for his antics against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
The Gunners were able to triumph by a 3-2 scoreline in the North London derby. Two of their goals came from corners, and White has a very specific role to play when it comes to Arsenal’s set-piece routines.
White has a reputation at Arsenal as being something of a master of the dark arts. When Mikel Arteta’s side have a corner, the right-back is tasked with essentially marking the opposition goalkeeper, in an attempt prevent him from coming off his line to claim the ball.
Charles Watts defends Arsenal star Ben White
The 26-year-old occasionally resorts to some underhand tactics in these scenarios. White amused Arsenals fans against Spurs as he was spotted trying to unstrap goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario’s glove.
Vicario shrugged White off and that was that. White’s antics have sparked outrage in some sections of the media, though. Pundits have criticised the defender for his actions.
Charles Watts has been baffled by this response. Calling out the overreaction on his Inside Arsenal YouTube channel, he said “This has been doing my head in, honestly. Genuinely, it’s bonkers, the attention this little incident in the North London derby has got.”
Why does Ben White seemingly have a target on his back?
This is not the only time that the full-back has provoked the ire of the media this season. White recently came under fire from the media for his decision to step away from England international duty.
It is probably fair to say that the player’s decision to snub the opportunity to represent his country, for his own personal reasons, has made him something of a marked man as far as certain sections of the press are concerned.
In truth, White’s behaviour against Spurs was barely worthy of a mention, let alone a mass response from the media. It would be fascinating to know if he would have attracted so much attention in this instance had he not already withdrawn himself from consideration ahead of the upcoming EUROs tournament.
White has been hailed as something of a “mentality monster,” and has already proven that he can handle off-field attention without letting it impact negatively upon his form. The former Brighton man has sparkled for Arsenal in recent months, despite having been criticised repeatedly in such a public manner.
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