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{ Wenger backs under-fire Fabregas(UKPA) – 38 minutes ago

Arsene Wenger has claimed Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas was the subject of a witch hunt.

According to Everton manager David Moyes, the Spain midfielder made unrepeatable comments to match officials as the players went down the tunnel at half-time of their Barclays Premier League clash at Emirates Stadium on Tuesday night, which should have earned him a red card, but Lee Mason did not include the incident in his report.

Asked if he thought there was a witch hunt against Fabregas, the Arsenal manager replied: "Yes. We are long enough in the job to know that somebody picks on you for a while, and you are in the heat of the moment. But for me what is the most important is the player behaves well."

He added: "When Cesc is on the pitch, he tries to play football - I cannot say everybody who plays against him tries to do that.

"For example, some people reproach him for not exchanging shirts with a player after the game - but I hope he will not exchange shirts with players who try to kick him for 90 minutes and them come to say 'please can I get your shirt'. I think that is a normal and natural reaction.

"Overall this guy is an example on the football pitch and shows you how to play football."

Wenger, however, feels Fabregas has the strength of character to silence the critics.

"People are more demanding, and Cesc has to live with that," the Arsenal manager said. "It is not easy, but he is a very intelligent man and he will learn very quickly to cope with that.

"Cesc is 24 this year, he has played 250 games in the Premier League - at that age, it is absolutely remarkable.

"He has gone through a lot, difficult moments, but has always come out stronger - this guy is a fantastic leader."

Copyright © 2011 The Press Association. All rights reserved.

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Labels: Association, backs, Fabregas, Press, underfire, Wenger

{ WHAT was a minor headache for Scotland coach Andy Robinson yesterday turned into a full-blown migraine as three backs were ruled out of this weekend's RBS Six Nations Championship match with Ireland and another six forwards rated doubtful.Robinson was already resigned to losing Euan Murray, the tighthead prop, as the game with Ireland, and the following one away to England, are on Sundays which goes against Murray's religious beliefs. That is not a major issue, so long as Glasgow's Moray Low steps up, performs well and remains injury-free, as Murray has not yet regained his top form.

However, Robinson has had to add Hugo Southwell, who suffered a bad cheek injury against Wales, Joe Ansbro and Rory Lamont - both injured paying for their clubs at the weekend - to a casualty list that still includes Glasgow pair Chris Cusiter and Graeme Morrison, fly-half Phil Godman and prop Alasdair Dickinson. The coach also has to make a call on whether Glasgow No 8 Johnnie Beattie is fit enough to return to the Test arena after playing just five games since a seven-month period out injured.

Those in the doubtful category are No 8 Richie Vernon (calf injury), Nathan Hines (knee), Dougie Hall (shoulder/neck), Rob Harley (side), Ross Rennie (big toe) and Jon Welsh (ribs). Only some of those players are expected to be fit to resume training today. The team is due to be announced tomorrow, so selection would ordinarily be settled by tonight, but there are many permutations still up in the air. Chris Paterson and uncapped Bath youngster Jack Cuthbert are vying to replace Southwell, with Paterson the obvious candidate when the pressure is great on the home side.

The most experienced outside centre in the squad to fill Ansbro's jersey is Max Evans, but the coaches are trying to develop his finishing skills on the wing. Sean Lamont is a contender for 13 as he performed well off the bench against Wales and has played there for the Scarlets and Scotland, but that was fleeting and over a year ago and the opponent this weekend is the streetwise Brian O'Driscoll, with either Gordon D'Arcy or Fergus McFadden inside.

The straightforward solution would be to restore Paterson to full-back, Lamont to the wing and Evans to centre, but whether that is what the coaches feel provides the greatest opportunity to beat Ireland, or is simply the best use of resources this week, would be a point for debate.

There was already much intrigue over the Scotland back division before yesterday, specifically around whether Rory Lawson and Dan Parks were the half-backs to take Scotland forward. Neither player performed well against Wales, but they suffered hugely with the quality of ball being received from the forwards.

Mike Blair awaits the call at scrum-half and Robinson will be mulling over whether to stick with Parks, in the hope that the pack lifts its game and he regains his best form, or whether to hand Ruaridh Jackson his next lesson, and shift the tactical approach.

There is arguably less debate about the make-up of the forward pack as Richie Gray and Beattie could return as straight swaps for Hines and Vernon without weakening the team, but if the others fail to recover the reserve strength will be tested.

It was no surprise that with all this on his plate Robinson was not available to talk about the latest developments yesterday, but, in an SRU statement he said: "We have made the decision now that all three of our injured backs will miss this weekend's international, so that brings clarity to our preparations. We wish all of them a speedy recovery. Our medical staff will continue to treat and monitor our injured forwards.

"Everybody was hurting after the display against Wales but we must now focus on the challenge that Ireland bring and there's absolute determination to bounce back against them at Murrayfield on Sunday."

James Robson, the Scotland team doctor, confirmed the injury problems and said that it was hoped that Southwell and Lamont would report back to the Scotland camp in two weeks' time fit and available for the penultimate match with England. Ansbro could even play for Northampton this weekend, he said, explaining that he could not return to full training until Thursday at the earliest, which was too late for Scotland, but, if everything went well, might open the door to involvement with his club in Saturday's league fixture.

As for the chances of the six doubtful forwards, he said: "It's been a busy weekend and busy morning so far. It is possible (that all 'doubts' will miss Sunday's game], but I would hope that the bulk of those guys will be fit. The beauty of this week, with a Sunday game, is that we have an extra day which is always a luxury in the sports medicine world."

If the physical health is not 100 per cent, the mental health of a squad shattered by their worst Six Nations performance in recent times must also be needing attention before the Irish turn up bidding for revenge from 2010 and their fifth championship win on the trot at Murrayfield.

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Labels: backs, Irish, Robinson, ruled, Scotsman, Selection, trouble

{ Walter Smith has backed El Hadji Diouf to survive another test of his temperament as the Senegalese forward prepares for round two of the feud with Celtic skipper Scott Brown which erupted earlier this month at Ibrox.

• Scott Brown, left, had a running battle with el Hadji diouf at Ibrox

Both players are renowned for having fuses as short as the bristles on their heads. Diouf has made it even more impossible to ignore him having this week dyed blue the narrow strip of hair on his scalp which has escaped the razor blade.

This act will do little to pacify Celtic supporters at Parkhead tomorrow, as their team prepares to host Rangers in a clash which is crucial to both club's title ambitions. These supporters have already installed Diouf as public enemy No 1 after he spat at a home supporter during a Uefa Cup quarter-final clash at Parkhead, while he was at Liverpool.

He was pursued by Brown during the Scottish Cup fifth-round clash between Rangers and Celtic a fortnight ago, before being taunted by the skipper after he had scored the equaliser in the 2-2 draw. Brown stood in front of Diouf with his arms outstretched. Celtic manager Neil Lennon later saluted both the performance and behaviour of his captain - and did so again yesterday.

Smith, however, gave a loaded response to a question which sought to divine the Rangers manager's view of Brown's actions that afternoon at Ibrox. "I'll leave other people to judge whether opposing players' actions were inflammatory or otherwise," he said, before adding that he had no fears about Diouf being caught up in the white heat of his first away match since signing on-loan from Blackburn Rovers on the last day of the transfer window.

Diouf will need to endure a much more hostile atmosphere tomorrow after enjoying a fairly comfortable introduction to Scottish football.

The four matches he has played so far have all been at Ibrox. He has mostly been unmoved by the provocation of opponents and Smith is confident Diouf can again rise above it all tomorrow, when he can expect to be baited by Brown and over 50,000 others. "I didn't speak to him a great deal before the last (Old Firm] game," said Smith. "I had a word with him, not particularly about the match. But he's an experienced enough player to know what's happened and I don't see why we should have a problem there.

"In the games he's played for us the lad hasn't done anything untoward," added Smith. "Sometimes when a player's career has been tainted by a reaction to certain situations that's the picture everybody paints of him. But we can only go by what we've seen. Everybody in an Old Firm game - and not just El Hadji Diouf - has to be aware of how their behaviour (can have an impact]."

Lennon, meanwhile, again gave solid backing to his captain's conduct and said Brown had learned there were certain lines "he cannot cross".

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Labels: backs, Brown, Diouf, handle, Scotsman, Smith