Morning all.
Kim Little, the in form player for both Arsenal and Scotland right now. She, together with Jordan Nobbs and Vivianne Miedema put five goals past reigning WSL Champions Chelsea just a few days ago. Chelsea hadn’t lost at home for two years making the 5-0 drubbing even more special. The downside of the game was the injury to Kim Little thanks to a ‘heavy tackle’ from Chelsea’s Drew Spence.
England international Lucy Bronze posted on Twitter:
“Real shame for Kim, Arsenal and the league. Fans come to watch players like her play. “But REPEATEDLY let down by the standard of officiating (not all officiating, may I add). But there’s a real underlying problem somewhere. My yearly rant.”
Phil Neville has also complained recently about the standard of the referees in the women’s game. As has Chelsea manager Emma Hayes in an interview with the BBC.
There’s little any referee can do to prevent a player from making bad tackles but what they can and should be doing is reacting in the right way by sending the player off. Just a booking is an acceptance of bad tackles simply being part of the game. They’re not. Good honest hard tackling is great to see when the player gets the ball, but when they don’t, they’re brutal. Career ending. We’ve seen bad tackles in the men’s game for far too long now, probably the worst affected as far as Arsenal goes in recent years was Abou Diaby. Eduardo never really got over his, Ramsey though seems to been more fortunate. Although I’m not sure that’s the right word to use.
I made the mistake of looking on YouTube for some of the worst but I didn’t get very far into the video clip before feeling rather ill. I’d just had my breakfast too which perhaps wasn’t the best timing. There’s been so so many bad tackles, some of which have left players legs/ankles hanging by a thread. Literally. Many of which appear deliberate although that can never be proved. There’s a difference between a badly timed or judged tackle and one and the premeditated which just looking back at Roy Keane and his body language prior to his bad one on Alfie Haaland supports such a theory. Keane was just a nasty b******d. He and Vieira had some mad moments between them on the pitch. Off it too. Back then though the two teams were the only ones really fighting for the league. The rivalry was as intense as a North London Derby. More so perhaps as the neighbours were a walkover at that time. Wrighty and Schmeichel Keown and van Nistelroy. Arsenal v Utd. Great times.
I don’t know if it’s my imagination or not but the really bad tackles seem to be lessening. Whether that’s down to players being more disciplined or whether it’s because the players in the PL are generally quicker so can get out of the way of a boot full of studs heading their way I don’t know. The fouling certainly remains a constant though as Lucas Torreira is finding out on a weekly basis and the officials are very slow to react. Too many sly, deliberate and in some cases, quite nasty tackles are going unpunished which has to stop. Yes, even the ones we commit although seldom do our players enjoy such freedom.
For Kim Little, the next ten weeks at least is all about recovering. Meanwhile, the offending player carries on playing.
Not that Women’s equivalent of the PGMOL, Gameplan for Growth’ I think they’re called will care about that too much…
Have a good Thursday guys..
Good morning Rico.
Tackles and tackling are dying arts in the elite game. Almost any tackle is deemed, by the officials, to be a foul whether or not the tackler actually succeeded in getting the ball. Watching the Spain/England game the other night, I was struck by how few attempts at a tackle where made, Dyer’s assault on Sergio Ramos aside, I can recall only a handful in the entire match.
I wonder how much time is spent at London Colney on coaching the players on tackling, Not much I would wager.
If players were well versed in the art of tackling I’m sure the number of injuries sustained would be considerably reduced, it is the wild lunge or deliberately late variety which are the cause of the problem as well as the official’s perceived inconsistency in application of the laws of the game.
The “heavy” tackle with which Drew Spence broke Kim Little’s leg was worthy of a red card however, not every tackle that causes injury is necessarily a foul and officials must be better trained in recognising such situations.
Football is still, just, a contact sport. It must not be turned into an anodyne form of ballet dancing with a ball.
Evening Cicero.
Good points.
Busy day today, on here too… lol
Highbury House is a very exclusive establishment, is it based in Pall Mall?
Morning all.
“Bad” tackles have been almost accepted by all when an Arsenal player is on the end of them.
Australia had a guy who played several seasons in the PL who was just a thug, Kevin Muscat, and he ended the career of a massively talented Aussie kid when Muscat was in his last season with one of the worst challenges I’ve ever seen in football.
He also had to pay compensation for a tackle he made in the PL after being sued.
People label these guys hard men lol
There’s nothing hate about being a cheap shot expert!
They’re grubs, and nothing more.
Sorry to raise him AGAIN, as I’m guilty of speaking about my son a bit lately, but if he copped a tackle like some that we see, I’m not sure I wouldn’t jump the fence and tear the “tackler” apart and I mean that.
After getting a taste of how much time, effort and money goes into giving a kid their chance to become a professional down the track, to see a scumbag ruin it all with a shocking tackle would tip me over the edge, I reckon.
Notice it’s note highly talented players who make these tackles?
It’s players of limited ability who need a physical presence to raise the level of their game but some just go too far.
Just to add, Cicero, you make some bloody good points and I doubt any fan wants to see the game become a non-contact sport.
It seems the officials pull up very soft challenges, yet themselves are very soft when dealing with the illegal ones.
Don’t think so Cicero, isn’t it near the club?
Drayton Park, that’s where it is.
New post up now