Yesterday’s game between Arsenal and Manchester Citywas an interesting one and not just for the ordinary reasons.
Yes, there were goals and a penalty miss to discuss but they are the things that interested me. The first of the reasons, briefly, were the red cards. Laurent Koscielny and Vincent Kompany got sent off during the game and they were sent off for very different reasons which, to me, typify some of the problems with modern defending and modern referring.
Koscielny wrestled with Edin Dzeko in the box, wrapping both of his hands around the striker’s waist and then he and many others seemed to be very surprised he got sent off. A slightly harsh decision perhaps but that sort of “defending” needs to be eradicated from the game. Hopefully the discouragement that a red card provides might help. Later in the game Manchester City’s captain, Vincent Kompany got sent off. His dismissal was for a tackle that was full blooded, at speed and in which he took the ball. I have seen several players needlessly sent off recently for similar “offenses” and he time it happens I despair a little bit more. The game is fast and referees struggle to keep up. Give them some help they get things wrong but they don’t have to.
However, the main reason that the game interested me is the boycott that some 900 Manchester City fans conducted over ticket prices. The Emirates Stadium is a wonderful stadium but charging £62 for a ticket is ridiculous. Away fans are an important part of the atmosphere at a game and they are an important part of the football club they follow. To charge them that amount of money is prohibitive and totally unnecessary. Away fans should be applauded not driven off.
At least the linesman at the game had the right idea as he suggested to the City players that they should go to the away end and acknowledge their fans.
Really Arsenal has no excuse the reason Koscielny was sent off is because he is CRAP such crap that the only way he can stop a world class striker is by rapping his arms around him instead of bing a good defender and getting in a proper position to deny him space or any chance to receive the cross. Arsenal has not had a good center back pairing in years. THIS TEAM across the the 11 is just not good enough and that is why they fail to out preform lower level team because they lack quality. What the fans are supposed to cheer for players that are not getting it done? It is one thing if 9 out of 10 games Arsenal play well so even on that one game they lose you cheer them on because they have earned our support the other 9 games. AND hopefully the game is against a top team not a 3rd a team from 3 devisions down in a cup match. (granted it was a penalty shootout loss but we still went out to bradford. So had the team been winning games and crushing the relegation fodder and after going down to 10 men lost to the defending league winners then OK it is not great to lose but we would support them. BUT that is NOT the case they have underperformed and it is not nerves or lack of fan support.
I have one thing to say to these players:
“For every man there comes that special moment when he is physically tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing – unique to him and fitted to his talents.What a tragedy if that moment finds him unprepared or unqualified for the work which would be his finest hour. ”
Sorry but this team is full of the unprepared and unqualified so the results should be of no surprise
A fair pice of writing. I am a Man City fan. Arsenal is my second team because my father was born and brought up in Islington. After the second world war my father chose to follow City over the scum across the City because after watching both for a while he came to dislike everything about them. Nothing changes. Remember the way they kicked you all over the park ending your unbeaten run destroying that young player you had in the process. The “respectful” knigjht of the realm, being interviwed and dismissing the threat from Liverpool, described us as “the mob behind us” not as Manchester City.
Please don't hate City. Just think of what we will be doing to those scumbags across our City in the future. City's owners have a ten-year plan. It is only three years in!