Cech claims Bayer Leverkusen lack values after seemingly mocking his performance
Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech questioned Bayer Leverkusen's professionalism after the German club appeared to criticize him for a shaky performance against Manchester City over the weekend.
Despite the arrival of Bernd Leno from Leverkusen over the summer in a deal that reportedly cost Arsenal £19.2 million, Cech got the nod between the sticks in the first match of the Premier League season. However, the 36-year-old seems to be struggling to adapt to new manager Unai Emery's system of playing out from the back and at one point saw his attempted pass across the goalmouth nearly go into his own net.
A video of the incident circulated on social media, with Leverkusen suggesting Leno should've gotten the start Sunday against the defending Premier League champions:
In case you all were wondering how to play out of the back... pic.twitter.com/LZkxznsGPs
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) August 12, 2018
Related - Cech: Arsenal rebuild under Emery 'may take time'
On Monday, Cech responded to the perceived jab by suggesting that the German club lacks values:
.@Arsenal we share important values which make us a big club not only on the football side . Fair competition, professionalism and sportsmanship are the biggest ones you teach young footballers and it’s sad to see when other clubs don’t share the same values. .@bayer04_en
— Petr Cech (@PetrCech) August 13, 2018
Leverkusen were quick to counter, insisting the comment was misinterpreted.
Hi Petr. It seems our joke about wanting to see Leno, our former player, in action has been taken a bit more harshly/personally than intended. It was only a bit of banter. We’re all for the values you’ve stated and wish you and your big club all the best. Nice 1v1 save on Aguero!
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) August 13, 2018
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