Arsene Wenger has called on Arsenal fans and players alike not to target Emmanuel Adebayor when the controversial former Gunners striker returns to the Emirates Stadium tomorrow.
Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini is confident the €29million summer signing has learnt the lessons of past mistakes and will keep the focus purely on the football against his old club.
Adebayor was handed a three-match ban for raking his studs down the face of Arsenal forward Robin van Persie following an ill-advised goal celebration — an action which resulted in a suspended two-game sanction and a €29,000 fine from the English Football Association — when he raced the full length of the field to slide right in front of the Gunners supporters during the clash at Eastlands back in September.
Wenger, who plucked the now retired Togo striker from relative obscurity at Monaco during January 2006 and helped turn him into one of the hottest properties in Europe, believes all that should be left in the past.
The Arsenal boss said: “I am stubborn, but not stupid — sometimes in the heat of the moment you can do things that are not right.
“It is not only Adebayor, but also Patrick Vieira and Kolo Toure — we will welcome them all back.
“We have always had the same line of conduct — to respect what they have done for us and we want our fans to respect that as well and encourage our team.
“No matter what happened in the first game, it is important that we have a positive attitude and encourage our players.
“I believe more than ever tomorrow we will need the crowd to be behind us. I expect everybody to behave well.”