Watch it again, he tries to grab him with his left arm right before he dives in kung fu style. As for the rest we agree. Francis is certainly the most culpable in it all.
What I meant is that he could have attempted to grab Barrowâs shirt after that one. Plus seeing the close up it looks like he barely stretched his arm.
Monreal also have some of the blame (but not as much as Coquelin or Xhaka), but it was 2v1 on that wing so running up the field clearly wasnât a good idea, considering he lacks the athleticism to recover.
Rooney was sent off a couple of years back for a similar foul. If the intention isnât to play the ball and solely the player it should be a red and the ref was right in this case.
Would you say the same about a shirt pull that brings a player down?
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I donât really know how both are comparable tbh. At least when you pull someone down youâre not potentially hurting the opponent.
Or course you are. Youâre pulling/throwing them to the ground in an uncontrolled manner. Injury could easily occur.
Not good for the game when a challenge like that is deemed a red card. Embarrassing.
Anyway, iâm kinda glad itâs happened, he needs âconditioningâ to the Premier League and the referees that inhabit it. Now Wenger has an excuse to work on him a bit over the next few weeks, plus we won the game anyway so doesnât have to be perceived as a negative by Xhaka.
Coquelin is just as rash as Xhaka, thatâs why we have/need a boatload of centre mids. Cazorla canât really tackle either. This is the entire rationale for having 4 bona fide central midfielders when only 2 can start a match.
He took a bad angle and read the play poorly and ended up going too deep, which allowed Barrow to make the quick turn and burst past him⌠it is as simple as that. Given that Le Coq was absent, it was even more important to be conservative. I canât believe we are even having this conversation. I have myself played that situation a billion times over the years - it is all about reading the situation early and getting into the right position, especially when the opponent is pinned against the sideline.
If you want to blame Le Coq more, that is fine, but it was a terrible play and this thread is about Xhaka. Given that earlier his little move cost us the first GA and had he not gifted that to Swans in the first place, we probably would have strolled to victory as it looked like we would.
Aahh you know when a football discussion is going nowhere when someone brings up the bullshit argument âBut I do it in my Sunday football leagueâ.
I donât know why Iâm arguing since youâre the same poster that was wanking himself silly over Kante in this same thread.
Kante was one of the best players in the league last year - many, many people have argued that. Kante hasnât settled in at Chelsea so far, but his last game was a masterclass and he has had quality moments. Kante may not be a great player, but he had a fantastic year in the Premier League and was one of, if not THE, most important players in the title winning side, a team that had absolutely no business winning the league. Why are people so anti-Kante? I havenât said he will be the best player in the league this year, but he was certainly incredibly good and consistent last year.
The point I was making about Xhaka is that his angle and approach were amateurish, even an amateur can see it. If you want to defend his atrocious play in that game, go for it. I disagree vehemently. He gave the opponent a goal earlier and then completed a poor play with a disastrous foul that nearly cost us the game.
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All I will say about his red card is that I have seen John Terry rugby tackle players because they have gone past him and not get sent off. In fact, I remember a case where Terry was left on the floor as a player went past him, and he held the players legs with his hand to bring him down and yet he only received a yellow. Now if this is a new rule this season, then fair enough, as long as it is applied consistently.
As for Xhakaâs performance in this game, every player has a shocker once in a while. Just that when the player is a defensive player, his mistakes usually cost the team dearly. Am sure Xhaka will be itching to get back and right this wrong. Not too bothered by this as he is quality.
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Weâd be talking about more than a yellow card anyway if he was throwing them to the ground. Most of the time itâs just holding someone back.
In this case itâs really just the kicking of the opponent without a ball anywhere close. Clipping him slightly while running behind would have been a very easy yellow for a tactical foul and not a reason to be sent off.
Arseblog said in his Sunday morning blog that itâs a three games ban. Can anyone confirm?
A three game ban for that would be an absolute joke.
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Itâs not stopping a clear goal scoring opportunity, so 3 games ban sounds right.
Haha too far that, he was at sideline of the half line.
I thought three games was for violent conduct? Is that what his foul would be classed as?
Yup
If your going to be our deepest player, your going to find yourself on an island pretty much all the time. No point blaming your team mates because itâs something that will happen time and time again.
To play that deepest position for us you either need top positional play ala arteta or you need to be able to cover 10/15 yards like a monster.
Atm whilst he has other outstanding qualities he dosnt excel in either of those for me right now. Itâs why Iâve said I have no problems starting Coquelin over him for now. Absolutely no reason to force him in there as soon as possible even if he has that position locked down long term.
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Pfff⌠describing that tackle as violent conduct is a serious stretch for me.
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Big time.