‘I wanted to hit Emmanuel Eboue’– Wayne Bridge reveals hatred for ex-Arsenal man

Wayne Bridge wrote himself into Chelsea folklore against Arsenal in 2004.

Bridge broke the hearts of Gunners fans when he thumped home a late goal in the second leg to seal a 3-2 aggregate Champions League win.

But, three years later it, was not hearts he wanted to break, nor the ball he wanted to hit.

Instead, it was Arsenal defender Emmanuel Eboue.

The usually ice-cool Bridge had Eboue in his sights when the two Premier League rivals faced off in the League Cup in 2007.

Bridge finished the game victorious again as Chelsea ran out 2-1 winners, but the heated clash will always be remembered for a mass brawl in which Bridge was heavily involved.

Chelsea team-mate Jon Obi Mikel was shown a red card along with Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Adebayor.

But replays showed it should have been Eboue who should have been sent off as Adebayor became a high-profile victim of mistaken identity.

And, speaking to the Liquid Football Podcast, produced by JOE in partnership with Paddy Power, former left-back Bridge admitted he would have loved to have stuck one on Eboue in the melee.

“I played in that cup final when they sent off the wrong person,” he said.

Three people got sent off and the one who should have got sent off never did.

“Eboue used to do my head in, he used to kick me all the time and get away with murder – and I just wanted to hit him because he used to frustrate me. If I gave him a little touch he’d fall over and get a free-kick.”

Bridge admitted he did all he could to get Eboue sent off and that he was disappointed when his attempt at some theatrics backfired.

“It kicked off at the end of the game, it was handbags really, but he hit me on the back of the head,” he added.

“I wasn’t going to turn round and hit him because it never really happens in football a proper scuffle so I just went down. But it was like a three-second delay.”

Asked by Liquid Football presenter Kelly Cates if he was deliberately trying to get him sent off, Bridge replied: “I was thinking I was going to get him sent off definitely.

Then I remember Jose Mourinho running on the pitch saying ‘stay down, stay down’.

“I went, ‘I will, I will’ and I’m thinking he’s getting sent off here and I was absolutely buzzing. And then they sent off Adebayor instead of Eboue and I couldn’t believe it. He was just laughing in my face. He really bugged me.”