Today, Carlo Cudicini has come out and openly complained about the refereeing in the game against Reading. An act, that will undoubtedly see him receive some sort of disciplinary sanction. No irony in that... The article on Soccernet (you all know how to find that by now) mentions that Gordon Taylor has suggested that rather than calling fouls when keepers are injured: goalkeepers should wear hockey helmets! The PFA is saying: there was absolutely nothing wrong with the two challenges that knocked the Chelsea goalkeepers out of the game, but we'd suggest one small change to English football: goalkeepers should wear hockey helmets. How can you claim that a knee to the head and a collision that knocks a player unconcious and he swallows his tongue are just "part of the game" and at the same time suggest radically altering the game?
fecking pathetic I wonder how the FA would have reacted if Van der Sar then Ben Foster were knocked out? Nice to see the FA has there priorities straight, worrying about a reserve match between the Scousers!
More to the point, I'd wonder how different the reaction would be if say one of our players had done that, I have no doubt it would have been slightly (ok majorly) different. Amazing Barton shows his arse.....punished. Cech knocked out, concussed, could have died, the works.......not a ********ing thing.
Don't be absurd. I'm saddened by the extent of Cech's injury but I don't think the challenge that put him out is any different from several challenges we've already seen this season. Its an unfortunate accident and we all hope that he recovers. Now, the bit about United - well you've just got to be kidding right? If it was a United player they might have awarded Hunt a medal. When Rio missed a drug test and then voluteered to take another (hair follicle test so no results would have changed) got an 8 month ban. Rooney and Scholes got a red cards (Rooney's was laughable) in a PRE SEASON tournament in Holland and got 3 match bans for the premiership. There's virtually no history of the FA being United sympathizers - but this isn't an argument that should be happening anyway.
Hunt didn't do that either. watch the replays from behind Hunt (freeze frame if need be) and you see Cech's right leg take out Hunt's standing leg as he slides along the ground. Take out someone's standing leg and their knee is going to go down as they go forward - and (from that moment) there'd be nothing they could do about it. Yes, he should have jumped out the way sooner and the collision is down to him, but he did not purposefully drive his knee into anyone's head - well not unless you just want to believe that.
I never said he did it intentionally Richard. Whether or not he meant to hurt Cech (which we'll never really know) I am sure that he certainly didn't want to do THAT to Cech.
I don't want to start a discussion about what if at happened to them instead of us. What I find shocking is that the head of the PFA can say keepers should wear helmets. He should say, keepers should be better protected and even accidental collisions (not contact) should be punished. Then the onus will fall on the field player to give the keeper space. But if he said anything like that, it would be equivalent to agreeing with Chelsea, Cudicini and Mourinho. So, instead we get helmets. It's ludicrous. Nobody has to blame Hunt, but to say the answer is helmets -- in my mind at least -- says both Reading players were guilty of being overaggressive. When will my view change? When the PFA makes goalkeeping helmets mandatory.
How should the field players be punished: Foul called? Carded? Banned? Depending on what the solution is, you either have little effect (if, say, Sonko were called for a foul, he'd still do what he did), or affect the game. Would ANY attacking player be allowed near the keeper? Would have have to get out of the way?
Neither challenges were on purpose, but both were dangerous. Clattering the keeper like that is a yellow card.
This is the part that is not getting enough attention, imho. The FA needs to start instructing players that this is what is expected of them, upon pain of (lengthy) match bans.
SOunds a little anti-Chelsea .. But thought i'd post it anyway .. Regarding the Cech injury .. So, José, you believe that this was deliberate, do you? In that case we challenge you: try it