Arsène Wenger believes Emmanuel Eboue will come back stronger after suffering at the hands of some Arsenal supporters on Saturday.
The Ivorian midfielder replaced Samir Nasri early on but was substituted himself late in the game after making a couple of important mistakes. Those errors drew criticism from the crowd and his eventual withdrawal was cheered by some in the stands.
Wenger was deeply disappointed with that reaction and, afterwards, backed Eboue to bounce back.
“I will sit down and talk to him,” said the manager. “But I believe it could make him stronger and more determined to show how good he is.
"Manu is really loved inside the team and he is a good boy. But you can see that when he lost confidence it was very difficult for him.
Kolo Toure was surprised at the reaction of certain sections of the Arsenal crowd to Emmanuel Eboue’s substitution on Saturday.
The midfielder, a 32nd-minute replacement for Samir Nasri, made a couple of mistakes late in a tight, tense game against Wigan on Saturday and, as a result, was brought off for Mikael Silvestre. Some supporters cheered Arsène Wenger’s decision but Toure felt that was uncalled for, unusual and unfair.
“Eboue had an injury for six weeks and this was his first game,” said the centre back.
“We had some injuries and that is why the boss put him on and he played well.
“At the end he had a difficult time but we need to give him credit because he was not 100 per cent however he had to play because of our injuries and he did well.
“The fans gave him a hard time and that is unusual at Arsenal. I was surprised because normally our fans are [always] nice. I think the tension was really high and that is why they were hard. In the end we had three points and that is good. He will have a chat with the boss and I think he will come back.
“We need him and he is a strong boy. I’ll call him, he will also have a chat with the manager on Monday and then he will be fine.
“I just want to tell the fans that he is a great lad, he loves the Club and wants to do his best for the Club. Sometimes, when you come back from a six-week injury you cannot give 200 per cent. We hope that next time they will help him to come back. That is the only way to behave.”
“There were five or six minutes to go and he couldn't keep the ball. It's partly explained by the fact he was playing on the left of midfield but then he played very well there when we beat Blackburn 4-1. Still when you lose confidence, it's not the best position for him.
“There were two aspects in the game. The crowd were behind the team when we suffered but, towards the end, they were so nervous as well. They expressed that and took Eboue as a target.
"You want your fans to be behind the team but we also have to focus on the quality of our performance and accept the verdict of the crowd. But I say again, apart from the very disappointing stuff with Eboue, they were behind the team for the most part.”
