Clubs are under no obligation to give a guard of honour as there is nothing in Premier League regulations that requires them to do so and yet it is a mark of respect for the champions which is performed each season. The Reds have already received one from Chelsea so far and with the Gunners next in the schedule, Deeney spoke to The Sun and stated that it should not happen and the club could use it as a message for next season.
"But like so many other things in modern football, it’s something I will never understand. Frankly, I think it’s a load of old b*****ks. It’s not so much a mark of respect as a humiliation for the team lining up to give the champions a little clap.
"It's as if Chelsea and Arsenal and everyone who plays the champs for the rest of the season is saying, ‘Well done, we’re perfectly happy you beat us’.
"During my top-flight days, Watford never played against a team who had already been confirmed as champions. But if I had been in that situation, I’d have refused point-blank. That’s what Arsenal, Liverpool’s nearest challengers this season, should do next Sunday. That would really set down a marker for next season. No more Mr Nice Guys."
However, Arsenal are expected to give champions Liverpool a guard of honour when the two sides meet at Anfield on Sunday afternoon in what could have been a title decider if points were dropped by the champions and the North London side stayed in form.
Arteta said last week how Liverpool were worthy winners and expressed how their was no bad blood between the two sides despite their intense rivalry this season.
“Nobody should be surprised because they have the level and they made it because they’ve done a lot of things very, very well,” he said.
“So they deserve to be champions. They deserve to win it, they’ve done it in a manner, in a way that has given no chance to the others and you have to congratulate that.”