Lee Dixon Recalls Training Ground Confrontation with Dennis Bergkamp

Former Arsenal full-back Lee Dixon has recounted a “full-blown slugging match” he engaged in with his then-teammate Dennis Bergkamp. This incident took place before a match against their local rivals, Tottenham. Dixon and Bergkamp were teammates at the Gunners for seven years, from 1995 to 2002, during which time they jointly secured two league titles and two FA Cups. However, their working relationship was not always without friction. Speaking on a recent installment of the Sacked In The Morning podcast, Dixon shared details of the event. He stated: “Dennis had something that nobody else had.” Dixon explained that both players were injured concurrently, necessitating their training with the reserves on a Thursday in preparation for the Saturday game against Tottenham, as the first team had a day off. Dixon described the unfolding events: “Arsene Wenger was coming over from his training session to watch me and Dennis – there was an 8 v 8 going on and Dennis stamped on my calf as I was on the floor, so I kicked him while I was on the ground.” He continued, detailing the escalation: “As I stood up, he kind of squared up to me. So I just, straight righted, right on his chin. And he left hooked me – so we had a full-blown slugging match.” Dixon recalled Wenger’s arrival during the altercation: “As we were fighting, Arsene Wenger was walking over to check how we were doing. He just looked, his right-back and his king were just slugging each other on the three pins.” Dixon reported that Wenger’s reaction was: “All we could hear was him going: ‘What are you doing?'” At that point, the fight ceased, and they embraced. Dixon sustained a significant black eye, while Bergkamp had a graze on his face. Despite the incident, Dixon concluded: “We both played on Saturday and we beat Tottenham 2-0 – so it was all right!”