Newcastle United midfielder Hatem Ben Arfa feels it is important for his side to forget Robin van Persie's altercation with Tim Krul.
Newcastle midfielder says team must put clash behind them
Newcastle United midfielder Hatem Ben Arfa thinks it is important for his side to forget Robin van Persie's altercation with Tim Krul.
Krul and Van Persie clashed after Thomas Vermaelen scored a late winner at the Emirates Stadium, with the two Dutchmen continuing their on-field row into the tunnel.
Ben Arfa's Newcastle lost 2-1 in the end, but the France international thinks it is important to forget about the game, and especially the Van Persie incident.
He said: "Van Persie is not our problem. We can't waste energy on him, it must all go on those last 10 games and we must concentrate on getting as many points from the 30 as we can. That's all finished, we now just have to keep our heads up high."
European place
The 25 year-old could not hide his disappointment but insisted his side must remain focused on European qualification.
Ben Arfa continued: "We are very disappointed to lose. We could have taken one or three points at Arsenal. After going 1-0 up we condeded far too quickly, and we made it difficult for ourselves."
He added: "There are 10 games left and we have to do the maximum to finish in a European place."
The former Lyon winger also offered an explanation for the bizarre celebration following his opening goal.
He said: "We did it because when Gabby (Obertan) is out dancing, he does it like a man who can't walk, We were having some fun with him."
