Mertesacker reveals Wenger banned papers and only sent dull players to interviews after Arsenal’s 8-2 thrashing at Man Utd
PER MERTESACKER revealed Arsene Wenger banned newspapers and only sent boring players to do interviews after Arsenal's 8-2 thrashing at Manchester United.
The German - now a coach at the Emirates - made the stunning revelation in his new book.
The towering centre-back joined in 2011 - shortly after the Gunners' 8-2 thrashing at Old Trafford - and admitted he was surprised by the lack of negative reaction to the embarrassment.
He said: "There was no feeling of tension, let alone crisis. Any negativity was blocked out — literally — due to the fact that London Colney – Arsenal's training ground – didn't admit fans or members of the press.
"There is no normal interaction between players and people in the streets, which means you're hardly ever confronted with different perspectives, you never get to witness first-hand how much the club means to people, and only rarely do you have to speak to journalists.
"In the long run, preventing the public from gaining any kind of normal access to them doesn't do players any favours. Rather, it creates a vacuum for them to float around in. Living such a cloistered life isn't good for someone's development."
The 35-year-old - who celebrates his birthday today - also claimed in his new book - BFG: Big Friendly German - players were banned from reading newspapers in the dressing room to protect them from bad reviews.
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There was also "no feeling of tension, let alone crisis" after the Gunners' pasting at the hands of the Red Devils.
And the cultural differences between Arsenal and his old clubs in Germany - Hannover and Werder Bremen - were also huge, according to the former German international.
He said: "At Arsenal, things were completely different. They didn't want everything to be focused on a single player. Instead, they preferred to send someone who might be less interesting to the media."