“In our day, we couldn’t have that much influence” - Gary Neville blames Mikel Arteta and Arsenal for fuelling fans’ hostility towards referees

Gary Neville has blasted Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta for fueling fan hostility towards referees. The former Premier League-winning defender cited the Spanish manager's language about refereeing decisions as a key reason behind fans abusing match officials.

The comments come after unpleasant conduct from fans of the North London club towards Micheal Oliver after he sent off Myles Lewis-Skelly in their last game against Wolverhampton Wanderers. Gunners fans sent death threats to his family- partner Laura and two-year-old daughter.

Addressing the situation on The Stick to Football podcast brought to you by SkyBet, Neville said:

"They [Arsenal fans] use language like corruption, which means they think he's getting paid and bought off – which is obviously not the case. We [at Manchester United] lived in a club which created a siege mentality about the referees. Arsenal are doing a bit of that as well – there's no doubt that what Arsenal do is inflame the situation after the game rather than calm it down, they've done that for 12 months – but we can't say that's wrong having played in the dressing room that we did. "

"The difference is now with social media, when we were playing back in the day and doing similar things with referees, we weren't inflaming what would be a cause of corruption on social media. Now you have a sway of Arsenal's anger, which comes from the players and from Mikel Arteta, and prominent fans. You now have a social media wave now which goes towards [allegations of] corruption and cheating. In our day, we couldn't have that much influence – everyone was at home without a phone, and didn't have Twitter," he added.

Mikel Arteta's side are bidding to end its two-decade wait to win the Premier League again. They are currently second in the league, six points behind Liverpool, who have a game in hand.

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“For everyone in football, it should not be ­permitted. We don’t want it, we don’t need it, it can only damage our sport, so let’s get it out" - Arsenal manager condemns fan threats to referees

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has condemned the threats made by fans to referees and their families. Gunners fans threatened violence against veteran referee Michael Oliver after he sent off Myles Lewis-Skelly in their last Premier League game.

Despite the red card getting rescinded, Arteta urged fans to stop all abuse towards the match officials. Speaking to the supporters in comments made via the Guardian, the Spaniard said:

“Every time I talk about this topic [my view] is the same, regardless of whether it is a player or a coach or a referee. We have to really work harder to try to eradicate that part of the game that brings nothing but bad stuff, bad taste and it makes people’s lives more difficult.”

“For everyone in football. It should not be ­permitted. We don’t want it, we don’t need it, it can only damage our sport, so let’s get it out. We shouldn’t be here with this hatred, these things we see, because they affect everyone and in the end they take away the joy of this sport, the reason for it – which is to enjoy ourselves, have good moments," he added.

Mikel Arteta has been in charge of the club since December 2019. In his 267 games, he has averaged 1.98 points per game. Although he has only won the FA Cup during that time, he remains contracted to the club until the summer of 2027.