Sleevegate: Wenger, Flamini and their bizarre battle

It was a night when Arsenal’s midfield power came to the forefront again. Two goals, a missed penalty, a lovely assist and some intricate passing — and at the heart of it all, the trio of Jack Wilshere, Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey.

But none of that was on Arsene Wenger’s mind. Their win over Marseille which put them on the brink of another Champions League last 16 spot will also be remembered for another bizarre incident and the public bashing by Wenger of Mathieu Flamini, for, wait for it, cutting his sleeves off.

Flamini says that he has been playing at the top level for 10 years and is comfortable in short sleeves: “I like to wear short sleeves, that’s what I like to do,” he was quoted as saying in a Guardian report .

But Wenger has other ideas: “I do not like that and he will not do that again. I was surprised he did that; we don’t want that,” he said after the match.

Flamini did the same against Manchester United in the Premier League and it’s clear that the Frenchman has no qualms in cutting off his sleeves with a pair of scissors. He also got into a row with Arsenal kit-man Vic Akers but the fault lies with Arsenal’s policy of the captain choosing which style the team will wear — short or long sleeves.

Clubs across the world allow their players to choose their preference so if Arsenal’s way of team-bonding is to make everyone wear the same kind of sleeves, it’s quite bizarre.

Players these days are pampered with customised body-fitting kits and boots which are designed to perfectly fit their feet — so to enforce on them long sleeves when they’re clearly more accustomed to short sleeves is a little too much.

On the other hand, Flamini could just take a lesson from fellow countryman Olivier Giroud, who just rolled up his sleeves.