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Rival match mars English soccer

The Arsenal-Manchester United feud rolls on.

Two days after Man U's 2-0 win at Old Trafford, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger accused the Red Devils of betraying the "spirit" of the game and marring English soccer's image around the globe.

Sunday's match, which ended Arsenal's record unbeaten streak of 49 games in the Premier League, was overshadowed by accusations of vicious fouls, cheating, refereeing mistakes and a disputed penalty.

"This game has been watched in 75 countries and English football had the opportunity to let football talk on the pitch," Wenger said Tuesday. "When football is not played in the right spirit you cannot agree with it."

Wenger claimed he didn't see the scuffles between opposing players and coaches in the stadium tunnel after the match.

Man U manager Alex Ferguson reportedly had soup, sandwiches and pizza thrown over him -- which was used to explain why he had changed out of a suit into a tracksuit for a post-match television interview.

Newspapers reported Tuesday that Wenger sparked the melee by screaming obscenities at Ferguson.

"It's a long story -- nothing happened so there's no story," Wenger said. "I don't know about food throwing. I did not see if something was thrown -- you'll have to ask someone else because I don't know."

Wenger said only Ferguson could say what happened in the tunnel.

"Why should I know what happened to Alex Ferguson's shirt?" he said. "Ferguson should know and he should say so."

Wenger criticized Manchester United's rough tactics on the pitch and said referee Mike Riley failed to control the game.

Wenger accused United striker Wayne Rooney of "diving" to get the second-half penalty that changed the game. Arsenal defender Sol Campbell stuck out his left leg but video replays showed he made little, if any, contact with Rooney. Ruud Van Nistelrooy converted the penalty kick. Rooney added the second goal in injury time.

Wenger said Arsenal's Jose Antonio Reyes was "kicked off the park" by United tacklers.

"I respect Manchester United and the referee -- but on this occasion I feel they did not like playing the game with the spirit we tried to play," Wenger said.

"And I don't feel the referee had the authority to make the football we love respected -- although referees have a difficult job. I don't want to accuse the referee -- he did the job as well as he could -- but I think the game should be played in the right spirit."

Also Tuesday, van Nistelrooy pleaded guilty to "serious foul play" for digging his cleats into the knee of Arsenal's Ashley Cole. The Dutch forward accepted a three-man ban from the Football Association and apologized to Cole, who was not seriously injured.

"Throughout my 10-year career I believe my disciplinary record is very good, not only for Manchester United but at all my previous clubs," van Nistelrooy said. "I accept the charge brought by the FA and I take full responsibility for this incident.

Arsenal still leads the Premier League, holding a two-point advantage over Chelsea and eight-point cushion over fifth-place United.

Bundesliga

Peruvian forward Claudio Pizarro returned after a three-game injury absence with two goals Tuesday to lead Bayern Munich to a 2-0 win over league leader VfL Wolfsburg.

Pizarro, hampered by a back ailment, scored in 24th and 45th minutes as Bayern dominated the surprising German-league leaders and climbed within a point of the top of the standings.

Supported by 10,000 of their own at Munich Olympiastadion, Wolfsburg's coaches yelled constantly at their players, which have been praised for their flair but were facing their first major test in 10 games this season.

"I'm looking for an explanation myself," said Wolfsburg coach Erik Gerets when asked if his players were fearful. "Bayern was good and we were bad."

Wolfsburg (7-0-3) remained in first with 21 points, but gave Stuttgart (6-2-1, 20 points) a chance to move top of the table with a victory Wednesday against Werder Bremen.

Munich was is third, while Hannover 96 moved up to fourth with a 3-1 win against last-placed Kaiserslautern.

In Tuesday's other two matches, Dortmund took a step out of its crisis by edging Hertha Berlin 1-0 and Bochum thrashed Moenchengladbach 3-0.

Dortmund was coming off a week in which the club announced the biggest financial loss in league history, while hundreds of fans blocked the team bus after a Saturday loss demanding an explanation for the side plummeting to 15th.

Things started dismally for Dortmund in front of 48,000 spectators at Berlin's Olympiastadion, with three attempts hitting the post in the first half before forward Jan Koller scored a minute before halftime. The burly Czech met a cross in the air for his sixth goal this season.

Copa Del Rey

Real Madrid striker Michael Owen is delighted by the scoring streak which has brought him three game-winning goals in as many matches, news reports said yesterday.

Owen's latest goal arrived on Tuesday when he delivered a left-footed shot from a Fernando Morientes pass in the 49th minute of Madrid's 2-1 win over third-division Leganes during the first round of the Copa del Rey.

It was the third time in a week he has made a vital contribution.

Owen opened his Madrid account in the 1-0 Champions League win over Dynamo Kiev last Tuesday, then netted the only goal of his new club's 1-0 Spanish league victory over reigning champion Valencia four days later.

"I couldn't be happier. In a week, I've scored in each competition. It's a really good time for me. I had quite a tough time at first but luckily things are now turning out very well for me," Owen was quoted as saying by sports daily As.
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