David O'Leary's apparent inability to conduct a press conference without making at least one disparaging comment about his former club Arsenal revealed itself again yesterday morning. Having called Arsenal "whingers" and "very sour" losers last Saturday after Leeds United had beaten Chelsea, O'Leary aimed another jab in the direction of north London when he said: "If we get beaten, we will lose with good grace and not whinge." He was talking prior to this afternoon's Leeds fixture - against Arsenal at Highbury.
O'Leary did try and retreat from that somewhat provocative position later when he said Leeds would not carry any lingering resentment into this game from the one at Elland Road in November. "The slate has been wiped clean" he said.
Then, Patrick Vieira faced a Football Association investigation into his kick at Olivier Dacourt's head and Robert Pires had to be restrained from attacking O'Leary in the tunnel after he had blown mocking kisses at the French winger, but O'Leary said yesterday that he did not think there would be a "hangover" from that explosive contest. Whether O'Leary or anyone else believes that is another matter.
Even without the element of needle that has insinuated its way into the match, it was going to be a big occasion. Arsenal need to win to ensure Champions League football next season, and there will be players wanting to impress before next Saturday's FA Cup final, while a Leeds victory would leave them only one point adrift of their second-placed hosts and would keep them in contention for the Champions League.
The stakes were high even before O'Leary's verbal intervention therefore, although the anticipated angry response from Highbury was not forthcoming, the Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger resorting to familiar icy diplomacy when asked about O'Leary's various comments.
"I accept every assessment of anybody about myself," Wenger said, "and I behave like I think it is right to behave. I do not especially read the papers or what other people say about me. I'm here to win games for Arsenal." Wenger said that he expects a "fair" game today, also a "committed" one, but he reminded those waiting for a boxing-style rematch that it was Dacourt who wrote to the FA about Vieira's head-high challenge and it was that letter which saw misconduct charges dropped. Of Pires, Wenger said: "Robert is a footballer and he is a professional. The best thing he can do is think about playing. It was a fiery match at Leeds but we have to concentrate on playing football. What happened then has nothing to do with what happens now. There were some heated moments in the game but it is time to forget about that."
With the cup final a week away Dennis Bergkamp may return from injury. Nwankwo Kanu is on international duty.
Leeds, too, should have some changes in their line-up. With a European Cup semi-final in Valencia on Tuesday, O'Leary is expected to rest either Rio Ferdinand or Dominic Matteo, leaving the way for Jonathan Woodgate's first action since January. Paul Robinson, Gary Kelly, Eirik Bakke, Stephen McPhail, Jason Wilcox and Robbie Keane are others in contention. Despite what O'Leary says about his shallow squad, he has strength in depth.
"But we're going there to win, not to get a chasing," O'Leary said of this afternoon's Leeds team. "I know people will say it is a gamble, because if we lose at Highbury it would cost us our chance of qualifying for the Champions League next season, but our priority is Tuesday.
"We have two enormous games in the next four days and I know I can't have my cake and eat it. Valencia has got to be our priority because it is the club's biggest game for 26 years and we could have to wait that long again to get another chance of playing in a European Cup final." Before that knock-out eliminator, first some serious sparring.
