Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has damaged "the image of the club" with his incorrect outburst over VAR, says former club chief David Dein.
Arteta tore into officials after Arsenal's 1-0 defeat at Newcastle on November 4. Anthony Gordon's winner - the only goal of the game - survived three separate VAR checks and, afterward, the manager described the award of the goal as a “disgrace” and “embarrassing” and insisted the Gunners deserved to win the game.
The manager went on to add that he felt “ashamed” to be working in the Premier League, with comments supported by Arsenal in a statement the following day. The Football Association has now charged Arteta for his outburst, meaning the manager faces a touchline ban.
Asked if he would have defended Arteta if still at the club, Dein told talkSPORT: "It wouldn't have happened. But we're in an emotional game and these things do happen, I think it's unfortunate, and you live and learn."
Asked if he would have warned Arteta about his conduct, Dein added: "Probably. But you don't want to undermine the manager either. The manager in the heat of the moment - that's what he believed in - I was at Newcastle that game, he felt aggrieved that he felt the decisions go against him.
"In the final analysis, I think it was a bit of misdirection, because the fact is, there was 101 minutes - three minutes added on in the first half and eight minutes in the second. In 101 minutes of football we only had one shot at goal, so you can't really say that the team deserved to win. It is what it is.
"There is a process in place for how they deal with these things and I just think it was a little bit unnecessary. I don't think it did the image of the club any good."
Dein, though, reserved some praise for Arteta's work at the club, how he has united the fanbase after years of perceived turmoil during the final years of Arsene Wenger's reign and Unai Emery's struggles.
He continued: "I think under Mikel they're doing a good job, I think there is a freshness there, you can see there is new belief - certainly the crowd have got it.
"There is a definite buzz about the place now that we haven't seen for several years, and it's the four-letter word - hope.
"You can see the team have got something good going for them, I think there's something positive, it's a bit of a renaissance going on at the moment at Arsenal."
