Weekend Footy 29th-1st November/December *Spoilers*

Arsenal's best performance for many weeks.

I thought overall it was well deserved with a bit of luck thrown in but as RvP said last night, these things balance out.

Chelsea were disappointing. They dominated possesion on occasion but then so did we for a period in the first half and were very comfortable after we went 2-1 up. There was more fight and urgency from Arsenal as well.

Scolari has the right to be upset about the offside but he must know that Chelsea did little to deserve much from the game. I know Anelka is the leagues top scorer but in games like this Drogba gives you something different and I was glad he wasn't playing. I'm suprised at the mention of injuries at Chelsea with the squad they have. Try having half the first team out with a lot less money to spend to replace them with and see how you get on.

If we play anywhere like this for the remainder of the season then we'll be fine and need to show that sort of attitude against all the teams and not just the top 4.
 
Thoughts on the weekend:

Good result yesterday. Yes RvP goal was offside, but he had one ruled out last year which wasn't. Couldn't believe how toothless Chelsea where. Djourou was assured at CB, and should make that place his own. Both full backs played well, Clichy has so much energy, is there a better athlete in the Premiership? Terry and Ivanovic where both lucky to stay on the pitch, is Alex injured too?

I can't see how people can complain about the 2nd yellow for Ronaldo. The first one wasn't a booking, although by rights he should have got a yellow for his reaction. I just don't understand what he was doing at the handball incident.

Great result for Histon. That pitch will always be wet because of it's location. If only my best mate wasn't as lazy he could have been playing for Histon as he was in their youth team.
 
Gooner14 said:
I can't see how people can complain about the 2nd yellow for Ronaldo. The first one wasn't a booking, although by rights he should have got a yellow for his reaction. I just don't understand what he was doing at the handball incident.
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Ronaldo obviously got confused or disorientated or something. Regardless of why, he shouldn't have been booked because he and his team gained nothing from it - quite the opposite in fact.

If he'd been in his own team's box at the other end of the pitch, defending, and handed the ball down like that then a booking would be more justified - although again, the laws of the game don't say it is necessary (a penalty but not necessarily a booking). To book him for handball when it only hurt his own team and actually did Man City a favour, is absolutely nonsensical.
 
Bosingwa's (sp?) cross was pretty incredible - but even so it was pretty unlucky that it went into the net (imo it was one of those touches that could really have gone anywhere....and anywhere else it would have been pretty safe) otherwise Lampard's shot just after half time was really their only chance

Im still not convinced Ronaldo should have been sent off from the letter of the rules - but he misses the Sunderland game (at OT) which he may well have sat out anyway, and I would hope with Park and Nani on the wings we should be about ok for that game
 
Gooner14 said:
I can't see how people can complain about the 2nd yellow for Ronaldo. The first one wasn't a booking, although by rights he should have got a yellow for his reaction. I just don't understand what he was doing at the handball incident.
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People can complain because, as has been said many times, deliberate handball doesn't warrant an automatic booking. If he'd deliberately used his hands to try to cheat it would be understandable. But he didn't -- he stopped the ball during the middle of a move that could have led to a goal for his team. A free-kick against him was the right course of action and would have been enough. I agree that he should have got a yellow for clapping the ref (and so subsequently should have been off), but that should have no bearing on the handball incident. The ref got it wrong.

Gooner14 said:
Great result for Histon. That pitch will always be wet because of it's location.
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Agreed, 'twas a hard-fought victory. Fair play to Gary McAllister, he didn't try to make any excuses about the weather or about the pitch. On a different day it would likely have been a different outcome, but I'm glad to see Histon making real progress.
 
dirtydog said:
Ronaldo obviously got confused or disorientated or something. Regardless of why, he shouldn't have been booked because he and his team gained nothing from it - quite the opposite in fact.

If he'd been in his own team's box at the other end of the pitch, defending, and handed the ball down like that then a booking would be more justified - although again, the laws of the game don't say it is necessary (a penalty but not necessarily a booking). To book him for handball when it only hurt his own team and actually did Man City a favour, is absolutely nonsensical.
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Football365

Remember, as always, Law 12 includes the general rule that, a player is cautioned and shown the yellow card if he commits...unsporting behaviour. If, in Webb's opinion, Ronaldo was guilty of unsporting behaviour, then he was right to show him the yellow card. Four of the most important words in football are, "in the referee's opinion."
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xyphic said:
Agreed, 'twas a hard-fought victory. Fair play to Gary McAllister, he didn't try to make any excuses about the weather or about the pitch. On a different day it would likely have been a different outcome, but I'm glad to see Histon making real progress.
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Just need the mighty Utd to step up to the plate in the league, and Cambridge could have 2 league sides :D
 
Yes we know you can get a yellow if, in the referee's opinion, you commit unsporting behaviour. How was it unsporting though? Except towards his own team!

I watched the whole match and the referee had a nightmare of a game from start to finish.
 
I can't believe that stunt from Ronaldo, I mean what was he playing at? I personally think he didn't want to mess up his hair, or rather he knew that it was going straight for his pretty boy face and he didn't want to get his face mangled!
 
Great result for Arsenal yesterday. I wouldn't say it puts them back in the race just yet, but it will certainly up the morale.

I just hope they can maintain a level of consistency until January, then Wenger buys a CB and a DM (highly unlikely I know, but meh :p)
 
Gooner14 said:
Yes RvP goal was offside, but he had one ruled out last year which wasn't.
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He's already had a legitimate goal chalked off this season that shouldn't have been ruled out (Sunderland?), and we've had 3 or 4 this year overall. :mad:. He also cited a few years ago scoring a perfectly good goal against Chelsea, I remember that I was at the game and fumed when the news filtered through.

Gooner14 said:
Both full backs played well, Clichy has so much energy, is there a better athlete in the Premiership?
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The guy's insane! :D

That's twice in two matches that he's gone on two runs in the opposition's half that required fouls and or yellow cards to stop him.

He however has been a little bit inconsistant this season, he's let a few mistakes into his game which he didn't have last season. While it's nice to see him add a much more attacking element to his game, I'd rather him being an excellent and consistant defender not creep out..

Gooner14 said:
Terry and Ivanovic where both lucky to stay on the pitch,
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As said above, Ivanovic should have been given three yellow cards!
 
Yeah no idea how Ivanovic wasn't given a yellow when Carrick was given a yellow for a very similar challenge. And Terry wasn't sent off purely because he is English, the double standard refereeing in this country is absolutely sickening. Also did anyone see Robinho's two footed studs up slide in on Van De Saar? Might have been a harsh red as there was little intent (definitely not as bad as Terry's) but I can't for the life of me see how it wasn't a yellow.
 
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Ronaldo's red card was harsh but it happens and he will have to accept it. People have been recarded for challenges that many considered a yellow at most, and worse decisions have been made.

I believe Rooney was sent off for an almost identical incident against Villareal in last seasons Champions League and Fergie didnt complain about that.
 
I think Fergie's reaction to the appalling refereeing yesterday was pretty subdued, all things considered. Of course the fact we won the match helps.
 
Ronaldo's 1st booking was the right decision IMO. He tackled from behind and had to go through SWP to get the ball which he barely clipped if anything, as the ball didn't noticeably go off in a diff direction. The clapping really didn't help.

As for the 2nd Yellow, it was intentional but they did not gain any advantage from it. Ronaldo didn't help the matter by saying he was being pushed, when there was clearly no one around him. I'd have given him the yellow if i was the ref.
 
I still think Micah Richards high foot warranted a harsher punishment than both the ronaldo incidents combined...

Have yous seen the stud marks on Vidic's chest? terrible.
 
Prob a bit of both. The ref's assistants must have also thought a yellow. otherwise there would have been more consulting before it was or was not given.

Agreed on Richards challenge. Def should have been punished.
 
dirtydog said:
Because of the rules of the game, or because of personal feelings towards Ronaldo? ;)
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Both. As i said earlier, any doubt in Webb's mind may have been swayed by Ronaldo's reaction to the first booking. Dermot Gallagher (ex ref) was on SSN this morning and said Webb had no choice but to give him the 2nd yellow.

Regarding this rule on what is and what isn't a booking when it comes to handballs; unless the officials are mind readers how can they tell (at the time of the incident) whether Ronaldo was trying to gain an advantage or not? All the ref's seen is Ronaldo intentionally handle the ball and would automatically think that he's trying to gain an advantage.

It's certainly a strange one though. Ruud Guillet made a good point when he asked what would have happened had Ronaldo actually caught the ball.
 
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