Kepa Arrizabalaga has given an interview to the Daily Mail during which he discusses THAT incident with Maurizio Sarri at Wembley.
You’ll remember it well – Kepa went down injured, Sarri readied Willy Caballero, Kepa refused to leave the field… and it all kicked off.
We wondered if the relationship between the pair would ever recover from what was such a public display of the lack of respect Kepa has for his manager.
Yet, here we are, in May, Kepa’s still between the sticks and Sarri’s still firmly in charge. Everything blew over, as these things often do.
Now the dust has settled on the incident, Kepa has decided to talk about it openly and share his feelings on the situation. Here’s his lengthy quotes, courtesy of the Daily Mail:
“It was news around the world.”
“People were talking about it and talking badly. It is normal for people to talk. My father spoke to me after when we were at home but he didn’t need to say a lot to me. By then I realised what I had done and there was not a lot left to say.”
“It was a difficult week. It happened on Sunday, on Wednesday I didn’t play against Tottenham and then I was back to play against Fulham.”
“I accepted what the manager said and the club fine and I realised I wouldn’t play the next game. I was right behind Willy and supported him and the team as much as I could.”
“Of course, that was the only thing I could do. It was something I did in the heat of the moment. It’s something I am not very proud of.”
‘It was a difficult moment which I’ve learned from and I’m still learning from. Now it’s time for me to look forward.”
“I said I was sorry. Football goes on. We all make mistakes.”
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The situation was blown well out of proportion at the time – that’s now clear. Emotion was running high at the end of the cup final, which led to overreactions from both parties.
Sarri was offered a surprising amount of support from those who felt Kepa was in the wrong, support which was not forthcoming prior to the incident.
He has now gone up in our estimations, as has Kepa following a string of excellent displays. It’s almost as though the argument never occurred…
