Mikel Arteta has backed Ben White’s ‘brave’ decision to make himself unavailable for England, after Thomas Tuchel revealed the defender is ready to resume his international career.
Having left the Qatar World Cup mid-tournament, the 27 year old made it clear he didn’t want to be selected going forward – with some reports suggesting he had had a falling out with one of Gareth Southgate’s assistant coaches.
Now, with the German in charge, he’s ready to play for his country again, and it was something Mikel Arteta was asked about in his pre-Chelsea press conference.
Reacting to a suggestion White’s return would be ‘controversial’, the Arsenal boss backed his player, saying, “I know. The opinion I can just take – because I was very involved in the moment that that happened and I know how Ben felt – was for me very, very clear that the reason why he made that decision.
“It was about how he was feeling about it and how struggling he was. It certainly wasn’t about that \[letting his country down\].
“It was about being the opposite, just facing the situation and saying ‘I cannot handle it now and I’m not the best person to represent the country in the way I feel right now’.
“So for me it was completely the opposite. I think not a lot of people would do it. What a lot of people would do is hide in that context, in that environment and let time go and nobody talk about it.
“What he did, in my opinion, was very brave and not a lot of people would have done it.”
A reporter then quoted former England international Stuart Pearce, who reportedly said of White that ‘…if somebody lets you down once, they’ll let you down again.’
“From what I understand the reasons wasn’t about letting somebody down,” Arteta responded.
“It was just telling somebody I don’t want to let you down and this is the way I feel. I think it’s very difficult for me to give you what you need.
“So I think it was very completely different.”
No doubt some of the more jingoistic sections of the press will try and make this an issue as when Ben White does get a call-up again, but for now he’ll sit these international games out he continues his comeback from knee surgery.
And please remember the hard and fast rule that when somebody blasts an important penalty over the crossbar in a major international tournament, they’ll do it again.