Post by QPR Report on Mar 7, 2009 20:46:39 GMT
Some things probably shouldn' t even be written about.
Sunday Times/Joe Lovejoy
Arsene Wenger fears terrorists could prey on football
The Arsenal manager says London could be a target
ARSENE WENGER is surprised football has not been targeted by terrorists. The Arsenal manager, who revealed last week that there have been security alerts at the Emirates stadium that turned out to be false alarms, is critical of police reluctance to escort his team to and from matches in England.
The attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Pakistan last Tuesday, when gunmen killed six policemen and a driver, awakened horrific memories of Wenger’s spell in charge of Nagoya Grampus 8, in Japan’s J League. In March 1995, terrorists released deadly Sarin gas into the Tokyo metro system, causing 12 fatalities and nearly 1,000 casualties.
Wenger said: “They put gas into the subway and people were killed. We heard they had bought helicopters from the Russian army and were planning to spread this gas over the whole city. It was a very worrying time.”
Of football’s worldwide audience, and vulnerability, he said: “I’ve thought about it many times, especially at the World Cup and European Championship, and I am surprised football has never been targeted here. I don’t understand why it should just be happening in Pakistan. London could be a target, you never know.”
There was legitimate cause for concern, he felt. “You have to rely on the internal security of the country you are in and in England our teams don’t get a routine police escort before games any more. It’s more and more difficult to get one. They refuse.”
Unlike Manchester United, who use a firm of security specialists, Controlled Event Solutions, whose headquarters is at Old Trafford, Arsenal rely totally on the police for protection when they travel to matches.
Wenger said: “As far as the players are concerned, I try to keep things as simple as possible. Otherwise you’ll have 20 staff and 11 players, then 25 staff and 11 players and so on. It would become too big. Apart from those playing the game, I try to involve as few people as possible. I don’t want a big security presence and five doctors. My attitude is, ‘Let’s just go and play football’.”
False alarms at the Emirates had not been publicised until now. “We have had alerts before games at home and we’ve kept it quiet,” Wenger said. “It has turned out to be nothing — like a bag in the stadium that somebody forgot.”
In November last year Sir Alex Ferguson criticised security at Arsenal after Manchester United’s 2-1 defeat in the Premier League. The United manager said: “You build a modern stadium like Arsenal have done and it’s a weakness when you don’t provide safety. It’s too open for my liking.”
Ferguson is routinely accompanied by a “minder”, on the touchline and in the tunnel, at all matches. In April 2004 United stepped up security at Old Trafford after police arrested suspects believed to be planning a suicide bomb attack. When the squad travel, they are under constant surveillance.
Arsenal’s London rivals, Chelsea, are also under close protection wherever they go and their training ground, in Surrey, is guarded around the clock.
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/arsenal/article5741083.ece
Sunday Times/Joe Lovejoy
Arsene Wenger fears terrorists could prey on football
The Arsenal manager says London could be a target
ARSENE WENGER is surprised football has not been targeted by terrorists. The Arsenal manager, who revealed last week that there have been security alerts at the Emirates stadium that turned out to be false alarms, is critical of police reluctance to escort his team to and from matches in England.
The attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Pakistan last Tuesday, when gunmen killed six policemen and a driver, awakened horrific memories of Wenger’s spell in charge of Nagoya Grampus 8, in Japan’s J League. In March 1995, terrorists released deadly Sarin gas into the Tokyo metro system, causing 12 fatalities and nearly 1,000 casualties.
Wenger said: “They put gas into the subway and people were killed. We heard they had bought helicopters from the Russian army and were planning to spread this gas over the whole city. It was a very worrying time.”
Of football’s worldwide audience, and vulnerability, he said: “I’ve thought about it many times, especially at the World Cup and European Championship, and I am surprised football has never been targeted here. I don’t understand why it should just be happening in Pakistan. London could be a target, you never know.”
There was legitimate cause for concern, he felt. “You have to rely on the internal security of the country you are in and in England our teams don’t get a routine police escort before games any more. It’s more and more difficult to get one. They refuse.”
Unlike Manchester United, who use a firm of security specialists, Controlled Event Solutions, whose headquarters is at Old Trafford, Arsenal rely totally on the police for protection when they travel to matches.
Wenger said: “As far as the players are concerned, I try to keep things as simple as possible. Otherwise you’ll have 20 staff and 11 players, then 25 staff and 11 players and so on. It would become too big. Apart from those playing the game, I try to involve as few people as possible. I don’t want a big security presence and five doctors. My attitude is, ‘Let’s just go and play football’.”
False alarms at the Emirates had not been publicised until now. “We have had alerts before games at home and we’ve kept it quiet,” Wenger said. “It has turned out to be nothing — like a bag in the stadium that somebody forgot.”
In November last year Sir Alex Ferguson criticised security at Arsenal after Manchester United’s 2-1 defeat in the Premier League. The United manager said: “You build a modern stadium like Arsenal have done and it’s a weakness when you don’t provide safety. It’s too open for my liking.”
Ferguson is routinely accompanied by a “minder”, on the touchline and in the tunnel, at all matches. In April 2004 United stepped up security at Old Trafford after police arrested suspects believed to be planning a suicide bomb attack. When the squad travel, they are under constant surveillance.
Arsenal’s London rivals, Chelsea, are also under close protection wherever they go and their training ground, in Surrey, is guarded around the clock.
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/arsenal/article5741083.ece