Wenger asked to explain recent comments over penalty calls

FA looking into Arsenal manager’s comments made before and after Chelsea game

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger looks on during the  Premier League match against  Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium. Photograph: Adrian Dennis/AFP/Getty Images
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger looks on during the Premier League match against Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium. Photograph: Adrian Dennis/AFP/Getty Images

Arsene Wenger has been asked by the Football Association to provide observations about his comments made before and after Arsenal's game with Chelsea, the governing body has announced.

Wenger complained about two penalty decisions given against the Gunners, the first awarded to West Brom on Sunday and the second given to Chelsea on Wednesday.

Both Premier League matches ended as draws and Wenger now has until 6pm on Tuesday to respond.

Wenger has said he intends to appeal the separate FA charge relating to his behaviour after last weekend's 1-1 draw with West Brom, when Arsenal defender Calum Chambers was penalised by Mike Dean for a handball.

READ SOME MORE

Arsenal then conceded another late penalty against Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium, as Eden Hazard went down following a challenge from Hector Bellerin. The game finished 2-2.

The FA’s latest enquiry relates in particular to Wenger appearing to suggest there may be a conspiracy against his team.

Wenger said before the game against Chelsea: “I must say what is more frustrating for me is that it happened many times this season – at Stoke, at Watford, at Manchester City, at West Brom. That is a concerning coincidence for me.”

On Dean’s decision to penalise Chambers, Wenger added: “He saw what he wanted to see and we have to deal with that.”

After the draw against Chelsea, Wenger told Sky Sports: “When opinions always go the same way it’s coincidence. Statistically it’s built on the fact that when it’s repeated it’s not coincidence.”