THAT video is wrong, I did not spit at Ballack, insists Arsenal star Fabregas

Published: 19 Mar 2009 - 10:39:35

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THAT video is wrong, I did not spit at Ballack, insists Arsenal star Fabregas

Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas has denied that he spat in the face of Michael Ballack in 2005. The 21-year-old Spain star has been accused of spitting at the feet of Hull assistant manager Brian Horton in the tunnel after the Gunners's 2-1 FA Cup victory over the Tigers on Tuesday night. Soon after Hull's allegations had been made public, incriminating footage of the incident with the Germany midfielder Ballack, now at Chelsea , emerged on YouTube. Post-match row: Fabregas (second right) mixes it with the defeated Hull squad The incident, filmed at Highbury in March 2005, shows the two midfielders clashing in a Champions League tie when Ballack was at Bayern Munich. Fabregas, then 17, appears to make a spitting motion towards Ballack's face, but Fabregas insists he only shouted at his opponent. Fabregas told The Sun: 'I have seen this video on the internet many times before and I remember the incident clearly. It was four years ago and I leant over to Michael Ballack, who was playing for Bayern at the time, and I shouted at him because I felt like I did not make a bad tackle and I felt that the contact was minimal. 'I did not spit at him. It happens during matches that sometimes you have heated exchanges with your opponents. I am not proud of it but I was 17. The referee saw it and gave me a yellow card. VIDEO: Fabregas v Ballack.... Judge for yourself 'People can try and find as many video clips as they like from when I was 17, or when I was 12 playing for my school team, but this does not change anything.' Arsenal won that European tie against Bayern 1-0 but lost the tie 3-2 on aggregate. UEFA investigated the incident but Fabregas was never called to task. 'Spitting' Fabregas off the hook ... but what WAS he doing on the pitch dressed like a hoodie? PICTURE SPECIAL: Relaxed Arsenal captain Cesc enjoys night on the town as spitting storm rages Hitting the heights: Fabregas is the latest pocket rocket to explode into football VIDEO SPECIAL: Great Expectoration! Sportsmail looks back at the moments that have left you spitting mad ARSENAL FC NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB