Newcastle United meet Arsenal once again on Saturday.
The Gunners visit St James’ Park in the Premier League’s early kick-off, their first return to Newcastle since last season’s controversial Toon victory.
Eddie Howe’s side won 1-0 thanks to Anthony Gordon’s second-half strike almost a year ago now, though that does not tell the whole story.
There were clashes on the pitch between the likes of Bruno Guimaraes and Jorginho, while the fact Gordon’s goal was allowed to stand sent Mikel Arteta into a rant about the standard of refereeing in England.
Joe Willock helped tee up the winning goal by crossing for Joelinton, who nodded down for Gordon. Still, there was a case to suggest the ball had gone out of play before Willock played it, as well as a potential foul from Joelinton in the build-up.
They were certainly tight decisions that could have gone either way but to suggest it was a complete robbery would perhaps be too much.
Now, some insight into what Howe thought about the matter has emerged.
Newcastle vs Arsenal: What Eddie Howe really thought about Mikel Arteta’s rant
According to The Daily Telegraph, Howe was privately annoyed by Arteta’s post-match message as it felt disrespectful to a team who had just beaten his Gunners side.
Focusing on what were tight calls took the attention away from the performance Newcastle had just put in against one of Europe’s best teams.
Why there is tension between Newcastle and Arsenal
There is thought to be animosity between the two clubs off the field, too.
Back in August during Arsenal’s links with a move for Alexander Isak, Miguel Delaney of The Independent revealed that the Gunners were trying to block the financial power clubs with the ownership model of Newcastle can yield.
That is said to have made for some “tension” in the boardroom.
Certainly, it looks as if Saturday’s game will be an interesting watch…
Receive a digest of our best Newcastle content each week direct to your mailbox
