Man City play their first UEFA Cup group game this Thursday against Steve McClaren’s FC Twente. See all the BestPrice betting here.

Stoke city manager Tony Pulis has accused Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger of being a bad loser.

Wenger caused controversy 48 hours after Saturday’s 2-1 defeat for the Gunners at the Britannia Stadium when he suggested that some Stoke players had set out to deliberately hurt his side and branded them ‘cowards’.

Pulis has now spoken out against the Gunners boss, and fears that as a result of Wenger’s remarks his side will be unfairly judged by officials.

“We have to accept that if you beat certain teams they’re not going to take it that well,” he told .

“There are people who are good losers and there are people who are bad losers.

“The worry for me is that the perception of us being a dirty team will affect the judgement of referees.

“I’ve rung Keith Hackett (referees’ chief) and I’m waiting to speak to him. I’m hoping and praying that the perception of our football club and our team will not be one of being a dirty team.

“We played Man City away from home two weeks ago and didn’t have one player booked.

“How people can say we’re a dirty team. We’re a very competitive team, and there’s a difference between competitive and being dirty.

“I will never change that. We are what we are. We have to be competitive to survive at this level. Competitive and dirty are two different things.”

Man City play their first UEFA Cup group game this Thursday against Steve McClaren’s FC Twente. See all the BestPrice betting here.