In the aftermath of Luis Suarez's bite attack on Giorgio Chiellini, it came as absolutely no surprise to see fellow World Cup cheat Diego Maradona staunchly defending the Uruguayan. As the old saying goes, 'birds of a feather flock together', and Maradona continued his support of Suarez this week by suggesting that Blaise Matuidi deserves a similar lengthy ban for his leg-breaking tackle on Nigeria's Ogenyi Onazi.
Matuidi's late 'challenge' on Onazi left the midfielder with a broken leg (fib-tib fracture), and after the game, Maradona raged:
“Where’s the ball? It’s criminal. Now I want to see the reaction of Fifa. The reaction of [Pele] and of [Franz] Beckenbauer. You must have a lot of nerve to not see that this is worse than Suarez.”
£18m-rated Matuidi apologised after the game, and seemed genuinely remorseful:
"I'm sorry. I've not gone in to hurt him; I'm disappointed because I'm not a dirty player. I went into the [Nigeria] dressing room afterwards to apologise."
I can understand Maradona's outrage at the challenge. I suffered the same injury during a league game 8 months ago, and like Matuidi, the thug who perpetrated the assault escaped without any real punishment.
Apologising is all well and good, but that's no consolation for Onazi, who suffered the heartache of seeing his World Cup dream die, and will now face a lengthy career-interruption as he spends months on sidelines recovering.
Clearly, the consequence of Matuidi's challenge is worse than Suarez's bite, but when considering the integrity of the game, the bite is arguably more serious due to the malicious intent involved. Suarez deliberately took a bite out of Chiellini; it was a premeditated act that had absolutely nothing to do with playing football.
Conversely, Matuidi (arguably) displayed no malice or premeditation; he committed his foul in the midst of trying to play the ball, but got the timing and execution of his 'tackle' horribly wrong.
![Blaise Matuidi destroys the ankle of Ogenyi Onazi (not for squeamish) [GIF]:](https://d3j5vwomefv46c.cloudfront.net/photos/large/858741269.gif?1404148270)
That said, in my view, any player who breaks another player's leg with a bad tackle should automatically receive a retrospective ban, even if it's accidental/without malice. How can a 'challenge' that breaks a leg ever be considered to be fair, or within the rules? It should be a strict-liability issue: break someone's leg, you get banned.
What good is a a yellow-card? It's pitiful 'punishment' for a tackle that ultimately has such serious consequences, and it acts as no deterrent whatsoever. If there were serious consequences for horror tackles, players would be forced to take extra care on the field.
Author: Jaimie K
Matuidi's late 'challenge' on Onazi left the midfielder with a broken leg (fib-tib fracture), and after the game, Maradona raged:
“Where’s the ball? It’s criminal. Now I want to see the reaction of Fifa. The reaction of [Pele] and of [Franz] Beckenbauer. You must have a lot of nerve to not see that this is worse than Suarez.”
£18m-rated Matuidi apologised after the game, and seemed genuinely remorseful:
"I'm sorry. I've not gone in to hurt him; I'm disappointed because I'm not a dirty player. I went into the [Nigeria] dressing room afterwards to apologise."
I can understand Maradona's outrage at the challenge. I suffered the same injury during a league game 8 months ago, and like Matuidi, the thug who perpetrated the assault escaped without any real punishment.
Apologising is all well and good, but that's no consolation for Onazi, who suffered the heartache of seeing his World Cup dream die, and will now face a lengthy career-interruption as he spends months on sidelines recovering.
Clearly, the consequence of Matuidi's challenge is worse than Suarez's bite, but when considering the integrity of the game, the bite is arguably more serious due to the malicious intent involved. Suarez deliberately took a bite out of Chiellini; it was a premeditated act that had absolutely nothing to do with playing football.
Conversely, Matuidi (arguably) displayed no malice or premeditation; he committed his foul in the midst of trying to play the ball, but got the timing and execution of his 'tackle' horribly wrong.
That said, in my view, any player who breaks another player's leg with a bad tackle should automatically receive a retrospective ban, even if it's accidental/without malice. How can a 'challenge' that breaks a leg ever be considered to be fair, or within the rules? It should be a strict-liability issue: break someone's leg, you get banned.
What good is a a yellow-card? It's pitiful 'punishment' for a tackle that ultimately has such serious consequences, and it acts as no deterrent whatsoever. If there were serious consequences for horror tackles, players would be forced to take extra care on the field.
surveys
Author: Jaimie K
JK, could you please tell me the name of the guy who inflicted this injury on you 8 months ago, I want to add him as a friend on facebook, :)
ReplyDeleteBe careful you could cause the whole network to crash :-)
ReplyDeleteI would, but several months after the incident, he mysteriously vanished, and hasn't been seen since...
ReplyDeleteFoul play I suspect.
ReplyDeleteThose reports might be false. Supposedly they agreed to the buyout clause, but it isn't all going to be upfront. Which is stupid if true, Barcelona is bad business, they shorted Sao Paulo on Neymar. FSG needs to demand they have every last cent before Suarez can even set foot in the plane to leave for Spain. I would rather see Suarez go to Real and us not do business with Barca, who seem to be the ultimate scam artist in buying players.
ReplyDeleteYou cannot be so prescriptive as to say any tackle that ends with a broken leg should automatically result in a ban.
ReplyDeleteIt is quite unusual for players to break a leg at the top level of football as they are generally very skilled and can ride tackles.
At a lower level of football as in your case it is all too possible for a genuine tackle to leave you with a broken leg through no fault of the the tackler just a lack of skill on your part. Unfortunately, some people are not genetically designed for football (Scottish people for example)and are unlikely to attain even the very basic skill levels necessary to prevent them falling over the legs of other players.
How can a 'challenge' that breaks a leg ever be considered to be fair, or within the rules? Simply put, if he wins the ball first AND the weight of the tackler's body accidentally forces his leg into a position that cannot be avoided. If you are serious then I have to question your opinion on tackling. This reminds me of when Roy Keane was reacting to a high footed attempt on the ball. He suggested that a high foot should never occur because of how dangerous it can be to others. If he really believes this then IMO, he would rather himself and everyone be deprived of witnessing a joyous overhead kick. My point is, any tackle could accidentally cause a leg-breaking injury if committed wrongly.
ReplyDeleteI don't see how that tackle can be considered an accident! the ball was well gone and Matuidi followed through, in my opinion it was nasty.
ReplyDeleteOh god are you serious ? Have you just said that it's the player getting his leg broken that is responsible for it because he lack skill and not the other way around ?
ReplyDeleteSometime you just have too lack at how the player is going dor the tackle to know that it won't end well, and it was the case with Matuidi, he just went poorly for the ball.
i think so too, feel more like he was frustrated with how the match was going and went wild with his challenge.
ReplyDeleteSo what!? Let the man kick a ball for LFC before any criticism!
ReplyDeleteThe action is in slo-mo and though it's a poor tackle it looks more clumsy than malicious imo
ReplyDeleteSorry Jamie I but you say you play football but make a statement like if a player breaks a another players leg they should be banned regardless.
ReplyDeleteIn all the years I have been playing football I have had the misfortune to bear witness to players having their legs broke twice.
In both occasions the players went for a 50/50 ball. One player suffered a broken ankle the other a dislocated knee (okay so no broken bone but bad enough)
There was no arguing or fighting from either sets of players as we all knew it was 100% accidental. Those players who suffered the injuries at no point ever put any blame on the opposing player.
As for the above tackle, yes it was bad, he was late with his studs showing so I would have no issue if he received a retrospective 1 match ban.
I am for some reason reminded when Carra did what can only be described as a brutal challenge against Nani at Anfield and only received a yellow card. If was only the fact that Nani jumped up, ran to Ref and then fell over in front of him I found the entire incident funny.
I'll add a smiley face - ok?
ReplyDeleteif it's sarcasm sorry to have misunderstand (internet is a hard place to have it right)
ReplyDeleteHe could just be wandering the streets from pub to pub living off all the free drinks
ReplyDeleteYou forgot to mention, Nani started crying, the first time I ever witnessed that.
ReplyDeleteI dont much care abt this. ..wat happnd to phil thompsonls claims
ReplyDeleteHonestly sometimes it surprise me how player who commit a rude challenge act so casual, i like a good tackle too (nesta could do some really impressive ones) but referees should be more strict toward player who are careless.
ReplyDeleteJust been watching it on Youtube.. I think Rooney pissing himself laughing was the clincher for me :)
ReplyDeleteOn the same note about players getting a ban for breaking a players leg regardless.. remember what happened to Luc Nilies?
ReplyDeleteAre you seriously saying that Richard Wright should of got banned for that?
Yes, I play football. Of what relevance is that to your point?
ReplyDeleteIt's my opinion that any player who breaks someone else's leg should be automatically banned. You may not agree, and that's fine.
Who decides whether a tackle is '50/50'? That is subjective; it's not an exact science.
If someone's leg gets broken, then the tackle is automatically illegal. How can it be anything but that? If a player tackles properly, fairly, and without the use of excessive force, then legs don't get broken, it's as simple as that.
I'm sure that anyone who has played the game will concede that players try every trick in the book to get way with niggling tackles, and one of the most common ways is to clatter into someone with excessive force, whist making it look like a fair tackle. There are lots of ways to do this, and it needs to be stamped out.
If players got automatic 5 game bans for horror tackles, they'd be forced to moderate their behaviour on the field.
Do you read what you even type? Nobody who has ever played football at any level would ever say that if a player gets a leg broken then that tackle must be illegal.
ReplyDeleteThe 2 examples I have given, Luc Nilies and David Busst, neither were reckless, illegal, dangerous tackles. They were very unfortunate but that is as far as it goes.
Damn right Wright should've been banned for that. In my view, he clattered into Nilis with excessive force, or did that career-ending leg break just occur out of thin air?
ReplyDeleteI am getting sick of the antagonistic tone of your posts. Drop the snide tone, or don't bother posting at all. This is my opinion; if you don't like it, tough luck.
ReplyDeleteNo, its called 2 players coming together at speed. It really is that simple.
ReplyDeleteThat is why not one single Villa player, the FA, the Premier League, Aston Villa as a club or Luc Nilies himself ever put any blame on Richard Wright.
Sorry for disagreeing with you, my apologises.
ReplyDeleteWhat we do know is that football is a contact sport and the other thing we know is sh*t happens.
ReplyDeleteI am sure we all will agree that biting has no place in football. Biting another human also should have no place in life unless the person is mentally retarded.
Tackles are part of the game and will always be.
Breaking the leg of a player intentionally without a doubt should be punished.
No malice, no intention or accidental if found to be true then why should the player be punished?
Didn't he also say "it's the managers decision where he plays me!" This is desperate scare mongering reporting!
ReplyDeleteWhy is the player who did the same to you a thug? Was it intentional?
ReplyDeleteWhat about the Mexican player that hacked Robben from behind and broke his own leg? Should we just nail that one down to karma or should he also get this blanket ban?
ReplyDeleteNo she said it was an accident.
ReplyDeletePremeditated bite vs unintentional but careless tackle. Bite is worse as there's no way you can account for this in football!
ReplyDeleteOn Onazi, I'm pretty sure we were linked to him and it looked like he would be getting a sweet deal on a transfer this summer. So on top of the impact on his career which may very well be finished now, he has also been affected financially. On Suarez, I doubt that this is premeditated with him. I'm convinced he short circuits and then it's like a reflex. None the less, worthy of a ban and of course it has no place in football.
ReplyDeleteHere's a novel idea - in stead of wasting a large chunk of whatever cash on another attacker, how about we offer Dortmund 40 million for Hummels? By far the best defender this world cup imo.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, Sakho looked like a complete fool trying to put on his scary face but, as always, his defending wasn't worth 18 quid let alone 18 million
ReplyDeletethis is probably the stupidest question I've ever seen.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree. Hummels would be a briilant signing.
ReplyDeleteStop making it impossible for us to work this one out.
ReplyDeleteWe should just write a book: How to fool the authorities
ReplyDeletePlaying Sahin as a no.10 was not a mistake. BR wanted either Mkhyitaryan or Dempsey to play there; he acquired neither. Sahin should've hunkered down for the sake of the team and put in a shift. Liverpool were going to buy a no.10 in January. If his attitude had been right, he would be playing behind Coutinho and Sterling and alongside Gerrard or Henderson.My take is, he didn't see the bigger picture.
ReplyDeleteI don't see Can as the replacement for Gerrard. Gerrard's replacement is Gerrard. The way forward is to replace Gerrard with a system where several players can come in and out and still have the job done. Am thinking of Henderson, Allen, Can, Brannagan, Suso and or Sakho.
ReplyDeleteIt was a mistake. it's not a case of just getting on with it; some players just can't operate effectively in certain positions. Just assuming that every player can play in any position the manager chooses is the mistake here. It's not a matter of attitude - if a player is not comfortable in a certain position, that sabotages the team.
ReplyDeleteAs a comparison, consider Martin Skrtel playing at right back. He played there against Spurs when LFC got hammered a couple of seasons ago. He was out of his element, and didn't play well. To persist with Skrtel in that position in the name of 'versatility' would've been a mistake. Skrtel later admitted that he doesn't like playing there, but that doesn't mean he has some kind of attitude problem.
I'm sure you would have preferred to be nibbled on than the fib tib break, Jaimie.
ReplyDeleteI've been spat at before in matches, and although infuriating at the time, I was able to cycle to work the next day.......
But that said, you just can't have a supposed top 3 player in the world running around biting people......
Matuidi's tackle is horrendous.
PS. I very nearly turned off tonight's game between Brazil and Columbia...... My patience is wearing thin with the way football is...... Maybe it's always is bad but I mainly focus on Liverpool and probably haven't watched as many games live, in their entirety, for quite a while.......
Fernandinho's unrelenting, and unpunished, cynical fouling tonight was very tough to watch.......
My brother turned his back on football a few years ago because of how frustrating it is to watch, knowing that billions of people worldwide know within seconds if a wrong decision was made......
There are 2 avenues of hope left
1 UEFA grow a pair and start implementing their own rules regarding video evidence / challenge system during a match, and breakaway from FIFA, we are the source of all the wealth
2 Wait until MLS becomes the biggest league in the world and the public over there demand that soccer avails of Some of the technology other US SPORTS do
I felt exactly the same way as you watching the Brazil-Columbia game. The endless cynical fouling was just so frustrating to watch, and basically ruined the game. Plus, the deliberate tactic of kicking Rodriguez out of the game just spoiled the spectacle. I was praying for Columbia to come back and win as Brazil don't deserve to progress. I hope they go out in the semi-finals.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Buy players for their specific positions. You get the best of players when you play them in their best positions. I hope Brendan learns from the Sahin experience. Do not make that mistake again Brendan
ReplyDeleteWith his new do, we should call him Skunko
ReplyDeleteGerrard's legs are failing. Brendan needs to play him less and play Emre Can in Gerrard's position or play them both with Lallana and Henderson in a 4-man midfield with one striker
ReplyDeleteIn principal, yes reckless challenges causing injuries should receive bans - e.g. Dummet causing Suarez to get surgery - oh wait that red card was rescinded!
ReplyDeleteBut it's not a bad idea to curb reckless challenges. This one here - don't think it's malicious, probably was intentional though - missed the ball, but decided to take the guy out - still reckless.
Sterling's red on Valencia - Red - becuase it was reckless, didn't cause any harm, but still reckless. Valencia's red against france, was BS.
What irks me about this cup is the favoritism with the officials - Giroud elbowed people in the face 2 games in a row. Neymar dives all the time, well the whole Brazil squad does - not one card for simulation. They seem to miss a lot of stuff from France, Italy, Brazil, Germany maybe - the underdogs have to play against 12 men.
Haha
ReplyDeleteNeymar out of World Cup with a fractured vertebra in his back. Brazil turned the game onto a street fight and they have lost their best player as a consequence.
ReplyDeleteThis could jeopardise the Suarez deal, as Neymar will be out for a number of months, Sanchez will have departed, Suarez CURRENTLY suspended.
I smell a shady deal coming up to "compensate" Barca for the injury suffered by Neymar in a World Cup match. Suarez will get a drastic reduction in club ban on appeal. You heard it here first
Neymar is not their best player.
ReplyDeleteToo bad Suarez couldn't confine himself to horror takes and stomps that just get you a yellow card.
ReplyDeleteAs long as he didn't handle the ball on the line it's not that bad ;-)
ReplyDeleteYeah I guess thats why Sterling as failed as a #10 Mr Jamie. You're ridiculous. Can is a young player....the manager knows more than he does. It was Sahin's mentality rhat held him back. And if u couldnt tell we had to get who we could to fill the squad. Gerrard was not a holding midfielder....now he is, Flanagan was not a LB...he played there after Jose Enrique got injured. But yeah point out one instance that went bad and forget when it worked. Smh
ReplyDeleteI agree with you.many managers/clubs have "destroyed" players career by playing them in positions which they psychologically don't accept.
ReplyDeleteIMO, a player may be versatile, yet it does not mean they are willing to play out of the favoured position every game.
how is this stupid? he clearly stated bad tackles that result in a broken leg deserve a ban. its not Robben's fault the guy committed a bad tackle from behind and broke his own leg.
ReplyDeleteSo wouldn't he have to get a ban also? he broke somebody's leg
its a valid question. only the mexican player has himself to blame.
ReplyDeleteOf course the biting is worse.....when it happens for a 3rd time.
ReplyDeleteThat is what my family/friends in Uruguay seem to not understand after all this madness. Address the issue and his problem and at least pay lip service about instead of acting like this is a vendetta against you.
NOW it just might be with this garbage talk by the president. How does this man get that high up with these kind of ass fro brains?
Talking about FIFA being crooks....well we know that....what does have to do with biting someone for the 3rd time? ...Then making excuses about it and defending the behaviour instead of saying you will work with the player to help him..... just at least show that you understand there is some problem.
If you don't watch yourself Uruguay.... FIFA might just ban you country with the idiots running the AUF. It is not like Uruguay has been looked at with a shining light in international futbol.
People do not like the way they play. They do not play with flair like people THINK that Brazil still does.
Guess what....Brazil DOES NOT play sexy football anymore...not on any consistent basis at all. They have been just as brutal and cynical as your Argentina or Uruguay since after the 1982 WC debacle.
They just have more flashy players to cover up the crap they dish out.
Going back to biting or tackling...... I forget who the Dutch player is who likes to break people and almost took out the Spanish player in 2010?
How many chances does he get and how much should his suspension be for doing stuff in the EPL and in the WC that he did?
At least Holland had the guts to suspend him from the team themselves.
Maybe if my country would quit having a defensive and small country complex attitude and look at the big picture they would see it would have been better to admit the wrong....plead fro help and mercy....even if you think FIFA are hypocrites.