Arsene Wenger has promised to defend Thierry Henry "to the hilt" following the Arsenal striker's improper conduct charge by the FA for an outburst against referee Graham Poll. Henry had to be restrained by team-mates and physio Gary Lewin at the end of Arsenal's Premiership defeat to Newcastle at Highbury on 18 December. The Frenchman was furious with Poll, who sent off Ray Parlour for two bookable offences when Arsenal were leading 1-0 - and awarded a controversial penalty for a Sol Campbell challenge on Laurent Robert.
Wenger said that the club would try to reason with the FA. "We will defend him to the hilt like always. We will go there to explain what happened. We will explain that Thierry is not usually a bad player and that he over-reacted. Then the FA will make a decision and we will accept that. We know the maximum is a three-game ban, but it could be less than that as well.
"I don't say he has done nothing. He over-reacted and he is the first to concede that. I don't believe that it is his intention to do it again. Sometimes people trying to stop you make it look worse than it actually is at it upsets you even more.
"It has happened before and people have not been punished. We are more in the spotlight but we accept that and have to live with that. We don't complain about it," said the Arsenal manager.
Filed by Greg McKevitt
