Cole row is fuelling London's new rivalry

14 April 2012

When Arsenal and Chelsea gather at Leicestershire's leafy Stapleford Park Country House Hotel for today's Premier League AGM the atmosphere is unlikely to match the tranquility of the surroundings.

David Dein and Peter Kenyon will be separated by only five places at English football's alphabetic top table - by representatives of Aston Villa, Birmingham, Blackburn, Bolton and Charlton for the record - but in reality a huge chasm divides them.

Chelsea are anticipating an "icily polite" reception from their London rivals today but there is nothing cold about the war between the Premiership's two leading clubs. The enmity is all-consuming, extending from the boardroom down to the two managers. It's no surprise that Jose Mourinho prefers the company of Sir Alex Ferguson to Arsene Wenger.

When Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea two years ago, Dein delivered the memorable line that the Russian's tanks were parked outside Highbury firing £50 notes at the Gunners, but this is a war of his own making. After successfully fighting off Chelsea's attempts to sign Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira it is ironic that the two clubs have fallen out over a player who Arsenal would happily part with, for the right price of course.

That Arsenal are no longer able to sell Ashley Cole is the source of Dein's discontent, though he has only himself to blame for driving the only buyer from the market. Without a Premier League inquiry into that infamous meeting, Chelsea could be preparing to boost Wenger's transfer budget with a £25million bid for Cole, or the player himself may even have committed himself to signing a new contract, scenarios which now appear as likely as Bob Geldof getting a job as an African dictator.

For their part Chelsea are furious at what they perceive to be Dein's personal vendetta against the club, while there is also unease at Wenger's increasingly self-righteous criticism. The Frenchman's recent observation that Chelsea lack moral leadership did not go down well at Stamford Bridge.

Dein remains unrepentent, however, insisting that Arsenal are the wronged party and maintaining his support for the rule of law.

He said: "We were all hurt, we were all angry at the time. The meeting took place on the 27 January and we were playing Manchester United on 1 February, which is hardly the best timing. There's no doubt that Chelsea lied to us and there were several people in denial at the time.

"The rules are in the rule-book for a very good reason. They have to be respected and without them it'd be a free-for-all. If we want to live in a society where everyone goes through red lights and there's accidents left, right and centre then that's a different story. Similar rules exist throughout European football and it's important everyone respects them.

"We were hurt, we were the injured party but time is a great healer in these things. Hopefully, this is all over and we move onwards and upwards. We'll be sitting at the same table with Chelsea at the Premier League over the next two days and will be talking to them."

Chelsea are unlikely to be buying the drinks, or even inviting their Arsenal counterparts to share a relaxing spa. Kenyon's repeated indiscretions show he has no wish to court popularity and, as a hard-nosed lawyer who came into English football via contacts forged on the Russian oilfields, Buck does not support Arsenal's Old Etonian view of the Premiership as a league of gentleman. The American is not a man to mess with.

Buck said: "We're disappointed that Arsenal chose to pursue this course of action. It was counter-productive to them, to Ashley Cole and, of course, to us. We have to consider what action to take as a consequence.

It will be very difficult for us to forget this. It will not be easy for Chelsea to put this behind us.

"They are another club in the league and we have to deal with them. But when you look at the whole proceedings from start to finish - and Arsenal's role in that - you have to come to the view that they had a particular agenda. And none of the possible scenarios on that agenda result in there now being a great relationship between Arsenal and Chelsea."

The mutual loathing in that particular relationship is matched only by the ill-feeling between Arsenal and Cole. It is understood that the England defender blanked Dein when he approached him during a break in yesterday's hearing and, with a contract extension unthinkable, it is a matter of when rather than if he leaves Highbury.

As Cole prepares to make legal history by contending that footballers deserve the same rights of freedom of movement as other employees, he seems set to follow the example of another footballing revolutionary, Jean-Marc Bosman, by leaving on a free contract.

As Buck pointed out: "I'm surprised that David (Dein) is happy because this couldn't be helpful to the relationship-between Ashley Cole and Arsenal. Ash ley wasn't happy about being subjected to this. Arsenal made the complaint so you can draw your own conclusions."

With both parties certain to appeal against their punishments, this sorry saga could run for much of the summer.

Whatever happens in the interim, the 2005 Charity Shield will not be a friendly affair.

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Cole row is fuelling London's new rivalry

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