Ben White branded ‘weird’ by Arsenal hero blaming ‘society’ for England snub backlash
Cesc Fabregas admits Ben White is a “weird” footballer having turned down the chance to represent England, but blamed “society” for the backlash he’s received.
White asked not to be considered for selection for the upcoming friendlies against Brazil and Belgium, with a report citing a bust-up with assistant boss Steve Holland while at the World Cup in Qatar as the reason for him snubbing Gareth Southgate.
Ben White “weird” but “society” to blame
The England boss had insisted White’s relationship with Holland had nothing to do with the snub, but it’s claimed the Arsenal star believes he was shown a lack of respect by the coach, who brought up his supposed lack of interest in football in front of his teammates.
White has dismissed claims he doesn’t like football, but admits he’s not an avid fan of the game.
READ: Ben White saga has exposed Southgate and England staff failures after pathetic six-word insult
Fabregas says the defender is in a “weird” minority but claims his views must be “respected” and came across a number of other players in his career who who had a similar outlook.
“I think it’s the society we live in at the moment. And I go back again to what I always say it’s all about the money,” Fabregas said on the Planet Premier League podcast when asked about White’s situation.
“Footballers get paid a lot of money. And it feels like they should all be focusing on football, no matter what. And they should be an example for everything, and you cannot make mistakes.
“Every error is being punished, double or triple a normal human-being. It’s the life we are in. One that we have to accept, one that we need to carry on our shoulders. And that’s it.
“I know plenty of guys, and of course, I will not mention names, that they finish training sessions and they just want to go home because they don’t really love football.
“They love playing football, they really enjoy it, the competition. They are competitors, they are winners. They like the moment, that hour and a half, two hours of being there.
“But after that, they don’t watch football. They don’t want anything to do with football.
“It is weird. It is not something that happens very often. Maybe only five percent of the players are like that. But it is what it is, and we have to respect it.”
Mikel Arteta rids Arsenal of “toxicity”
White can instead focus on his football for Arsenal, who are targeting their first Premier League title in 20 years and are through to the Champions League quarter-finals.
And Fabregas was full of praise for the job Mikel Arteta has done at the Emirates, claiming he’s removed all the “toxicity” that had seeped into the club before he took the helm.
“Arsenal were immersed into a big mess,” Fabregas said of the period before Arteta took over as manager.
“I think there were too many people talking. There was a lot of toxicity, I would say, within the club, around the club. He just came in, he had an idea, he had his methodology, his style of play, and he put it all together.
“He had the bravery – even though he’s a young coach – to put it all together and to say, ‘right this is the standards, this is what I want to do.
“I think he keeps repeating the words – if I’m not mistaken, in press conferences – he talks about intentions, character, running, standards.
“Hard working people, young people that really want to play for the badge, be there for the club, make the club grow, and I think this is what he changed, the mentality.
“He took away all this toxicity around the club that was hurting the players, the managers, and he’s done really well. I think this is the biggest accomplishment he’s done.”
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