Fans pinpoint moment that sparked melee after Man City vs Arsenal as they ask ‘why’s Ben White picking on him?’
AN eagle-eyed fan appears to have spotted the moment Ben White’s melee with Phil Foden erupted and were left asking “‘why is he picking on him?”
Manchester City’s 4-1 win over Arsenal turned frantic at the final whistle as both sets of players came to blows.
TwitterBen White confronted Phil Foden to spark the melee between Arsenal and Man City[/caption]
TwitterThe Gunners ace grabbed the City star by his collar at the full time whistle[/caption]
BT SportErling Haaland and Ben White were then seen shouting at each other[/caption]
BT SportTempers then boiled over as players from both teams got involved[/caption]
A brace from Kevin de Bruyne and strikes from John Stones and Erling Haaland delivered a hammer blow to the Gunners’ title chances at the Etihad last night.
But despite the hefty victory and Arsenal barely being able to lay a glove on the reigning champions, it remained a fiery encounter throughout.
Arsenal fans called for Ruben Dias to be sent off at the end of the first half when he kicked out at White – with Michael Oliver showing him a yellow card.
Jack Grealish and Thomas Partey came to blows in the second period when the Man City man nudged over the Arsenal midfielder.
The Ghanaian responded by storming into Grealish and pushing his hand into his face.
And those aggressive vibes continued at the final whistle when Haaland and White appeared to get involved in a confrontation.
Haaland was caught by the BT Sport cameras marching towards White.
As he approached the Arsenal man, he was kept a safe distance away by a host of red and blue shirts.
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More players began to get involved in the melee as referee Oliver was forced to diffuse the situation.
Now a clip has emerged of what started that trouble, and it shows White approaching Foden, who appeared as a late sub, before grabbing hold of his fellow England World Cup squad member’s collar while appearing to say something to him.
Foden attempts to shove White away, although the defender clings onto his rival’s shirt, before the pair are eventually separated as team-mates, including Haaland, race in before squaring up.
One fan reacted to the footage by asking: “Why is White picking on Foden?”
Another called White a “f***ing weirdo” as another tweeted: “Doesn’t care about football but he’ll randomly square up to the international colleague who played 10 minutes.”
While another commented: “Where was this energy during the 90 minutes????”
On White, who left England’s squad back in Qatar early, another added: “And they wonder why they sent him home in the WC.”
City’s 4-1 win moves them to within two points of Arsenal with two games in hand.
And it may well end up being the decisive blow in the title race come the end of the season.
City also maintained their push for the treble as they prepare for a Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid and FA Cup final against Manchester United.
BT SportArsenal were raging after Ruben Dias kicked out at Ben White in the first half[/caption]
REXThomas Partey and Jack Grealish also nearly came to blows[/caption]