Lauren: Clash was an accident
Arsenal defender Lauren has insisted that there was “nothing sinister” in his “accidental” clash with Tottenham’s Erik Edman during his side’s victory at Highbury.
Lauren must wait to discover whether the Football Association review video replays of the second-half incident, in which his elbow made contact with Edman’s neck.
However, the Arsenal full-back has already made clear that he did not mean to injure the Tottenham full-back, who collapsed to the ground and received treatment.
“It was just a normal challenge. Both players went for the same ball and it was a fair challenge, the kind that happens in every game,” Lauren told the Evening Standard.
“It is nothing more than that, there was nothing sinister in it. We both went for the same ball and tried to push each other. It was accidental. There was nothing intentional from me.”
Blackburn defender Andy Todd made a similar defence after clashing with Robin van Persie during the FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal just 10 days earlier.
And while Todd was found not guilty of misconduct, he still had to go through an official hearing to prove his innocence and escape any punishment.
Lauren will therefore hope that he is cleared to take part in the FA Cup final against Manchester United, as well as the rest of Arsenal’s league campaign after closing the gap on Chelsea to 11 points in the 1-0 win.
“I don’t think there is 11 points between us and we have proved that when we have played them.
“Our problem has been that we haven’t been consistent in a defensive way - and I’m talking about the whole team,” he added.
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