David Luiz and Dani Ceballos’ training ground bust-up at Arsenal may be an indicator of a deep-lying “problem” for the Gunners, says Martin Keown, with Mikel Arteta urged to keep a lid on emotions.
Tempers are said to have flared at London Colney as the Gunners prepare to return to domestic competition after the November international break.
Reports suggest that Brazilian defender Luiz and Spanish midfielder Ceballos became embroiled in a heated dispute that led to punches being thrown.
Ceballos sought to play down the severity of the incident on social media, while Arteta pulled off his best Arsene Wenger impression when quizzed on the spat and claimed not to have had a good view of it.
Keown has no issue with ambitious team-mates butting heads off the field, with passion an important trait for any side to boast.
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He is, however, concerned that there may be other issues for Arteta to address at Emirates Stadium, with frustration at recent performances – including a 3-0 defeat to Aston Villa last time out – leading to fingers of blame being pointed by those who should be pulling together.
The former Gunners defender told talkSPORT: “If it did happen, it wouldn't be unusual. These things happen.
“It's never nice to see it but Arsenal lost that game against Villa heavily and maybe there is a little bit of a problem within the camp and sometimes people get fraught with one another.
“There's a fighting spirit there. You won't want it to happen too often.
“You need to keep everyone together and Arteta needs to be on top of it.”
The Arsenal boss swept the matter under the carpet when asked about it at a pre-match press conference, with the Spaniard adamant that a storm has blown over.
When quizzed on what had happened, Arteta said: “Nothing.
“Training is very competitive and issues happen a lot of times. Those things get resolved immediately within the team and there is not much to say.
“There is no problem at all (between the players).”
Arsenal are in the process of readying themselves for a trip to Leeds on Sunday.
