Conor McGregor sent mocking three-word message after Arsenal antics
Conor McGregor had a kickabout with Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka after Arsenal's Champions League win over Paris Saint-Germain and his UFC rival Michael Chandler has taken aim at the Irishman over his football skills
by Matthew Cooper · The MirrorUFC star Michael Chandler has aimed a dig at rival Conor McGregor after he was seen having a kickabout on the pitch with some Arsenal players after their 2-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain.
Goals from Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka gave Arsenal their first Champions League win this season and McGregor took to the pitch after the final whistle, with the 36-year-old posing for photos with a number of Gunners stars.
He was also seen kicking a ball about with Saka and Declan Rice, with videos of his antics being shared on social media. And Chandler was quick to comment on McGregor's football skills, referencing the reason he pulled out of their scheduled fight at UFC 303.
Commenting on a video of McGregor on Instagram, Chandler wrote: "Great footwork for wearing steel toe boots." He then added the hashtag: "Protect the toe at all costs."
Chandler was set to welcome McGregor back to the UFC earlier this year, with the pair set to fight in June after coaching a season of The Ultimate Fighter against each other. The contest would have been McGregor's first since he broke his leg against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021.
However, the Irishman pulled out of the fight with a broken toe. "Man, we were so f****ng super ready for this fight it is absolutely gut-wrenching to take," McGrego wrote in a post on Instagram at the time.
"I want that new Bugatti how I gone justify to myself getting that now without banking these fights. We had a lapse in concentration and engaged in a training session without wearing the full protective gear and I hit the toe off the elbow and broke the toe clean. It needs a few weeks that's it.
"I couldn't justify to my team, or fans, that I make the walk hindered again. That walk has been seen. This next walk has got to be, and it will be, 100 per cent Conor McGregor. The fans deserve it and we are getting close. A slight lapse in concentration and a nuisance of an injury was picked up. That's it."
As a result of McGregor's pull-out, Chandler is now set to fight former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira at UFC 309. McGregor, meanwhile, is not set to make his return until 2025 according to UFC president Dana White.
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