Football: Van Persie sends Piers Morgan a message with signed picture of his league title win

Robin van Persie dealt a blow to one of his biggest detractors after sending him a mysterious package in the post.

                                                       Robin Van Persie sent a photo to CNN presenter Piers Morgan

Sent to CNN host and Arsenal fan Piers Morgan, who has waged a running battle with Van Persie all season, the package contained a double-sided picture of the Dutch striker kissing the Premier League trophy with one message        reading : 'Piersy my man, thanks for all the support! You made this day even more special! All the best, Van Pursestrings.'

The other read: 'Great to be a champ.. so many #Tears4Piersy

Morgan had given Van Persie the nickname 'Van Pursestrings' to imply that the former Arsenal captain joined the Premier League champions for money, although he took the message in good humour.

                                                       In good humour: Piers Morgan said he'd take it 'on the chins'

Writing on his Twitter page the former Daily Mirror editor said: 'After all the grief I've given Van Pursestrings, he's allowed a whack back. I'll just have to take it on the chins.'

Morgan has had several Twitter battles with various current and former footballers, most notably Gary Lineker and Joey Barton.

Walcott swapped shirts with Van Persie in the tunnel to avoid the wrath of Wenger and Gunners fans

Theo Walcott has avoided an Andre Santos-style backlash from Arsenal fans despite swapping shirts with Robin van Persie on Sunday.

                        Avoiding controversy: Walcott in Van Persie's United shirt which he picked up in the tunnel after the match

The Gunners forward was seen giving a post-match interview wearing a United shirt after the 1-1 draw.  

It belonged to his former Arsenal team-mate Van Persie, with the pair exchanging jerseys in the Emirates Stadium tunnel moments after the final whistle.

Santos was the subject of a furious reaction from supporters after making a beeline to Van Persie at half-time of the Gunners defeat at Old Trafford earlier in the season.

Criticised: Santos angered Wenger and Arsenal fans for asking Van Persie to swap shirts at half-time of Arsenal's 2-1 defeat by Manchester   United at Old Trafford last November

He made the approach in full view of TV cameras and Arsenal supporters.

The left back was also criticised by Arsene Wenger for his decision to approach Van Persie for his shirt.

Walcott's wise decision to swap shirts in private has helped avoid a similar storm.

Robin van Persie teams his suit with trainers as he attends PFA awards with wife Bouchra

Robin van Persie has been at Manchester United almost one year and he is already being hailed as a hero.

However, the Dutch striker might have the magic touch on the pitch, but off it his fashion smarts are lacking.

The 29-year-old let the team down as he attended the Professional Footballers Association Awards on Sunday night, wearing a pair of trainers.

Casual affair: Robin van Persie opted to wear trainers with his smart suit as he attended the PFA awards with wife Bouchra on Sunday night

Bouchra, who describes herself on Twitter as 'Mum of two gorgeous kids, proud wife of amazing husband', looked sensational in a green cutaway dress.

Must try harder: RVP wore trainer shoes

Van Persie, who was named PFA Player Of The Year for the 2011–12 season, was shortlisted for this year's honour, but missed out to Gareth Bale.

Bale has almost single-handedly kept Spurs in contention for a place in next season’s Champions League, scoring 19 goals in 29 Premier League appearances, including a goal-of-the-season contender at West Ham and one in Tottenham’s first win at Manchester United in 23 years.

The 23-year-old Tottenham winger became only the third man to win the double accolade, following Andy Gray in 1976-77 and Cristiano Ronaldo six years ago.

He also joined Mark Hughes, Alan Shearer, Thierry Henry and Ronaldo as the only men to have won the main award twice, after his first triumph in 2010-11

Emirates State of Mind: Jay-Z and Coldplay star Chris Martin watch Arsenal face champions Man United

Coldplay singer Chris Martin and American rapper Jay-Z were spotted at the Emirates for Arsenal's 1-1 draw with Manchester United.The pair share a friendship that even they have acknowledged as unlikely - and also a love of Arsenal.Martin has been to the Emirates before - he and his band played a gig there in June 2012.

Jay-Z, meanwhile, said three years ago that he would be interested in investing some of his millions in Arsenal.He said: 'I don't know a lot about the business of soccer, but in the future if the right opportunity presented itself, then who knows? 'I am a businessman, and I will always look at an opportunity, and if it feels right, great.

Arsenal will boost their own pot of cash if they qualify for the Champions League.The point gained against the new Premier League champions on Sunday afternoon did them no harm, leaving them in fourth place.

Jay-Z's favourite Arsenal player was Thierry Henry and although he has left the club, Theo Walcott - wearing the Frenchman's No 14 - opened the scoring.The equaliser came from former Gunners hero Robin van Persie, slotting home from the spot.

Football: We won't sell any more players to United after RVP, insists Arsenal boss Wenger

Arsene Wenger is adamant he will not sell any more of his Arsenal stars to Manchester United after Robin van Persie swapped the Emirates for Old Trafford last summer.

The Dutchman was part of the United team who turned out for the 1-1 draw between the two clubs in north London yesterday after being greeted with a guard of honour from his former team-mates. The Premier League top goalscorer was jeered throughout the game by the same fans who previously lauded him, but scored a penalty to cancel out Theo Walcott’s early opener. 

Wenger sanctioned the £24million sale of Arsenal’s prize asset last summer after Van Persie notched up 37 goals in all competitions for the Gunners.When asked whether opposite number Sir Alex Ferguson was interested in any of his other players, Wenger repiled: ‘I don’t know but he will not sign them from us.’

Robin van Persie blasts Manchester United to Premier League title

It ended with Sir Alex Ferguson bowing to the Stretford End as the loudspeakers pumped out The Courteeners. Ferguson, at 71, is more a Josef Locke man but he will have appreciated why this was the first song to get the party going at Old Trafford. "Not 19 Forever," was its title. It has been the soundtrack to Manchester United's season and now, once again, they could call themselves the champions of England.

They had played like a side in a hurry to be reunited with the trophy. They also had a striker, Robin van Persie, playing at the point of maximum expression and it felt appropriate that the Dutchman should be so prominent on the night. He, more than anyone, has been instrumental in the title race and when he shimmers with this kind of brilliance he is probably entitled to feel aggrieved that the Professional Footballers' Association sent out its player-of-the-year voting slips during the one point of the season when he has endured a lapse of form.

Van Persie might not win the individual honours but he has certainly had the greatest impact and his first-half hat-trick, taking him to 24 league goals and leapfrogging Luis Suárez as the leading scorer in the division, was the work of an expert in his field. He was at the hub of everything, the arrowhead of attack, bristling with menace, making it feel like a trick of the imagination that it was only a few weeks ago he was snatching at chances and following up every miss with a look of self-revulsion. Van Persie has put together some portfolio in United's colours but he took his performance up another level here and the volley for his second goal, from a ball dropping over his left shoulder, was probably his outstanding work to date

Robin van Persie scored a hat-trick in the first half as Manchester United sealed the Premier League title with an 3-0 defeat of Aston Villa

Congratulations United on this feat of winning the 20th Premiership title