Arsenal 3 Newcastle Utd 0: NO ARSENAL player shook Joey Barton's hand at the final whistle. Gael Clichy even swerved out of the Newcastle midfielder's path, avoiding eye contact, as if to seek out worthier opponents to acknowledge.
He was afforded a pat of appreciation from his manager, Kevin Keegan. But, as the jeers pursued him down the tunnel, Barton's was a sneer of acceptance. This was a savage reminder of what is to come.
The Emirates is not known for its unforgiving audience and the abuse will be more ferocious than this if he ever trots out at Goodison Park, Anfield or even Eastlands. Not that he will be seen at those venues any time soon. Barton has been a free man for under five weeks and will attend a Football Association hearing on Friday regarding his assault on the French midfielder Ousmane Dabo, with a ban that could amount to as many as 15 games sure to follow. He may not be seen again until Christmas. His manager may disagree but the 25-year-old will not be missed. His three-minute cameo provided a sting at the end of Saturday's match, the instant heart-pumping lunge that won the ball from Samir Nasri prompting the Frenchman, clearly shaken by the aggression in the tackle, to clip his opponent off the ball.
Keegan claimed Nasri had "sliced" Barton down. That was a mystifying choice of words when the foul was little more than a trip; while the Arsenal winger was correctly booked, Barton will struggle to pull off playing the role of the victim ever again.
"We know the guy," said Clichy. "He wanted to make something for his first game back, but Samir did well and I'm proud of him."
This was clearly an occasion when emotion eclipsed common sense. Keegan may have been short of players, but there was little logic in throwing Barton into the fray. This game had gone. With so many French players in the Arsenal side, and the Dabo hearing so close, his presence was always likely to prove inflammatory.
Mikael Silvestre, sitting in the stand, once rejected a move to Newcastle because he did not want to be a team-mate of the man who had assaulted his friend. Dabo's compatriots will not forget. "It can be an explanation, but not an excuse," conceded Arsene Wenger who, in contrast to Clichy, was unimpressed with Nasri's reaction.
Keegan was apoplectic. He berated the former Marseille winger as the players departed the turf, William Gallas retorting as the finger-jabbing turned manic, and moved to justify Barton's brief involvement. "He's going to have to play somewhere," he said. "Joey's was a good tackle. What you're probably asking is: 'Why did he come on and want to go into a tackle?' Because that's his game. That's what got Joey into the Manchester City team and kept him there. He tackles. The two worst incidents on the pitch today weren't from Newcastle United players. The off-the-ball one (from Nasri) was a bad tackle for me. And, on another day, Cesc Fabregas' challenge on Habib Beye." On that, the Newcastle manager had a point.
His team, though, ended up with none. Mike Ashley was caught on camera downing a pint of lager in the stands - this display may have looked more appealing through a beery haze. Newcastle competed coherently for only 10 minutes early in the second period, during which time Nicky Butt flicked a header on to the bar. But the spell yielded no reward and ended abruptly with Denilson capping a typically sumptuous move by scoring the hosts' third.
Keegan and Ashley will try to add to squad numbers today with Hamburg's Timothee Atouba, the Guinean defender Kamil Zayatte and Valencia's Ignacio Gonzalez close to joining. There will be as much onus placed on securing Michael Owen to a three-year contract extension. The England striker was starved of opportunities here, as Fabio Capello watched on glumly.
All the pizzazz came from the hosts' collection of non-English talent. This was Wenger's team at their swashbuckling best. Robin van Persie's brace, the first spanked in from the penalty spot, made the win a formality. The Dutchman was exhilarating, fed by a resurgent Emmanuel Adebayor. An X-ray on an ankle complaint revealed no damage and Van Persie will link up with the Dutch squad for their games against Australia and Macedonia.
Arsenal may have the midfield enforcer Wenger craves by the time he returns from Skopje. Internazionale's Patrick Vieira attended this game. "Patrick will forever be a hero at this club," added the manager with a smile. The search for his successor continues.
• Guardian Service
