MONACO coach Leonardo Jardim said he refused to shake Arsene Wenger’s hand after his side knocked Arsenal out of the Champions League because the Frenchman had snubbed him after the first leg.
Monaco claimed a shock 3-1 win at the Emirates Stadium in the teams’ round-of-16 clash and, while the Gunners battled back with a 2-0 victory at the Stade Louis II on Tuesday, the Ligue 1 side progressed on away goals.
Jardim said that Wenger had declined to greet him after the first leg, so he returned the favour after the return match.
“In the first leg, when I wanted to shake his hand, he did not thank me, so this time, even though Arsenal did everything possible to go through, I chose not to thank him,” the Portuguese coach said.
Asked whether Wenger’s behaviour was disrespectful, he said: “I think so and right now we are celebrating and think that Arsenal maybe did not show all the respect that they should have during the first leg.”
Wenger said after Tuesday’s match that he did not feel Monaco were worthy winners but Jardim disagreed.
“I think it is deserved, the qualification,” he said. “We managed to take advantage of the first leg when we won 3-1.
“The second leg was the match that we expected. It was very intense, the opponents took advantage of the mistakes we made in the transition, which is how they scored their goals.”
He added: “Nobody was expecting us to be here. It’s a great reward, so we have to give credit to the players for what they did.”
Former Braga, Olympiakos and Sporting boss Jardim admitted his side would be seen as an ideal draw for the next round.
“In the quarterfinal draw, all the teams will want to play Monaco,” he said. “For me it will be the first time I have experienced the quarterfinals of the Champions League.”
Meanwhile, Monaco forward Dimitar Berbatov, who scored in the first leg, said his side’s progress was unexpected but was delighted to see the players come through.
“We fought as a team today,” the former Tottenham star said. “We had a bit of luck but we are through.”