Arteta questions ‘different’ Carabao Cup ball: Six of the weirdest reasons for defeat | OneFootball

Among the toughest responsibilities of a top-flight football manager is having to face the media and explain yourself after a tough loss.

After falling 2-0 at home to Eddie Howe’s Newcastle United in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final, Mikel Arteta dug deep for an excuse, telling the press that his Arsenal side were not used to the match balls used in the competition.

He said: “It’s just different. Very different to a Premier League ball, and you have to adapt to that because it flies differently. When you touch it, the grip is very different as well so you adapt to that.”

Say what you like about the validity of the statement, but it is far from the oddest calls made by a manager after a tough match. Here are six of the best excuses they have come up with over the years:

Alan Pardew – Notting Hill Carnival (2012)

Alan Pardew’s Newcastle time in charge is memorable for a variety of reasons, not least for his characterful press conferences. He stuck the blame for a 2-0 away loss to Chelsea on Notting Hill Carnival in 2012.

Made to play twice in three days after a Europa League qualifier in Greece, Pardew had hoped to have the Magpies match moved to Sunday, but could not due to Notting Hill Carnival taking place that day.

He said: “Today was a little bit unfair on us. We couldn’t move the game to Sunday because of the Notting Hill Carnival. It would have been good to have that extra day’s rest.”

Ian Holloway – Swindon’s haunted training ground

Ian Holloway is always good for a quote. Struggling after taking charge of Swindon, he told BBC Radio Wiltshire he believed the club’s training ground was haunted given it is situated near an ancient burial site, and that he would ask his wife to cleanse it with sage.

He said: “I’m absolutely devastated so I’m going to try and cleanse the training ground area because people are telling me it’s haunted. There’s a graveyard somewhere nearby. Honestly, I’m not joking.”

He also pointed to some “strange happenings” there, such as doors slamming themselves and chairs falling over. Maybe he is on to something there…

Sir Alex Ferguson – United’s away kit

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One of the most iconic moments of Sir Alex’s Manchester United reign came on an unsuspecting afternoon in Southampton. His Reds were wearing grey on the day but were dismantled in the first half, heading into the break trailing by three goals.

Ferguson told his side to change their shirts at half time, telling the press at full time that the bright South Coast sun was making it hard for the players to pick one another out in their pale shirts.

The gambit did not work out, though – the final score was a 3-1 loss, and United were later slapped with a £10,000 fine for the change, which he called the “best £10,000 I ever spent.”

Vladyslav Vashchuk – Frogs kept us awake

Ukraine were not particularly far from home for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, but defender Vladyslav Vashchuk will certainly have been missing home after his first night in the team camp.

Following a 4-0 rout at the hands of Spain, he blamed his poor performance on a poor night’s sleep as frogs were making too much noise outside the team hotel.

He complained: “Because of the frogs’ croaking we hardly got a wink of sleep. We all agreed that we would take some sticks and go and hunt them.”

Alan Pardew – The grass was too long

Another Pardew gem from the following season – following a tough draw away to Rangers, the manager put Newcastle’s struggles down to the length of the grass at Ibrox, which was long enough to disrupt the Magpies’ build-up play.

“We wasn’t at our best tonight it is fair to say,” he said. “The pitch didn’t really help as it was a bit long the grass, it slowed the ball down.”

Jurgen Klopp – Extreme wind

Another manager with a penchant for making excuses, Jurgen Klopp struggled to get to grips with British weather on his first arrival on Merseyside.

Known for his high-powered pressing game, he once said he had to adjust that style due to the whipping Merseyside wind.

“There is a different style of football here, partially due to the weather,” he said. “The wind can be quite extreme in England. We are not familiar with that in Germany and you have to keep things simple.”

He reprised the line two years later, again pointing the finger at the elements after a 2-0 cup loss to Southampton, saying that “the wind was really strange, it was difficult to handle. That was difficult for a football-playing side.”