Wenger urges Spanish ref to keep cool

Arsene Wenger has urged referee Manuel Enrique Mejuto Gonzalez not to ruin tonight’s all-English Champions League quarter-final first leg against Chelsea as a spectacle.

Wenger is worried the Spanish official could overreact to the physical nature of the encounter and start issuing a mass of cautions.

“It will be a Premiership-style game but with an invited referee. He may be surprised by some of the challenges in the game that are normal in the Premiership,” observed Wenger.

“That could be the unknown thing in this game – how the referee reacts to this style of match.

“For people to enjoy watching the game, it must be fluent as that is what they are used to in England.

“Should 40,000 spectators and 22 players have to adapt to the referee or would the reverse be better? Of course, he still has to respect the rules and make sure the game is fair though.”