Not really a whole lot happening this morning but this afternoon’s game against Wigan now becomes even more important in light of Liverpool’s 2-1 defeat at Newcastle yesterday.
Three points for us leaves us 1 behind them with a game in hand as well. No slip ups today lads. No giving them the first goal. Let’s have at them right from the start.
Arsene Wenger has again called for the use of video technology to help referees with contentious decisions and to stop the cheating that goes on in the game. He says:
Last weekend [at Middlesbrough], Philippe Senderos made a foul which was outside the box and the player dived inside the box because he knew that was the only chance he had to get the penalty. Video evidence would have showed that. As long as football wants to be regressive, the cheats have a chance to win more than if we had video evidence, and referees will continue to make wrong decisions.
I don’t particularly get the ‘waste of time’ arguments from people against the introduction of video technology. Surely it can be added on at the end in injury time. I’m not 100% sure about using it though. I can see how it would work in a situation like the one with Senderos which probably would have seen the penalty not given. There was a natural break in the game at which point the referee could have looked for assistance.
Where you normally hear calls for video technology though is when a ball may or may not have crossed the line for a goal. If, for example, a player shoots and the ball bounces close to the line but is then cleared by the opposition and the ball remains in play how is it possible for the referee to stop the game and get the video referee to make a judgement on what happened? It might be a case that the opposition go up the field and score themselves. So, without a natural break in the game, like in rugby when a try is scored and the ball has gone to ground, it makes it very difficult.
As well as that just because there’s video evidence doesn’t mean the officials or watching pundits will get the decision right. How many times have you watched a game and seen a foul or penalty given when there was no offence? This example from a few weeks ago shows just how ‘blind’ some people are even with replays from four or five angles.
Where I do see a place for video technology is using it retrospectively to cut out the cheating. I think we should accept human error, frustrating as it might be at times, as part of the game. Players make mistakes, managers make mistakes, referees make mistakes. What would be very interesting though is the idea that an opposition team can cite an opponent after the game for what they consider serious foul play or blatant diving/cheating etc.
The evidence could be reviewed and punishment doled out afterwards. As an example Joey Barton might be in trouble for his deliberate and cynical stamp on the achilles of Pedro Mendes yesterday (that poor fucker must hate playing Man City) or Cristiano Ronaldo could be taken to task for his dive last weekend against Sp*rs. Let’s say a deliberate dive gives you a one match ban and a fine of £50,000. Subsequent offences increase the punishment.
It wouldn’t be perfect but you can be quite sure managers of all teams will be telling their players to stay on their feet if there was the possibility they could miss games through their cheating. At the moment we get the odd yellow card flourished when the ref thinks a player has taken a tumble which really is no deterrent at all. If they really want to cut out the acting then this is the only way to do it.
Anyway, in other news Stewart Robson talks about how Theo Walcott can learn from Tomas Rosicky while Arsene Wenger praises the work that Double-D does at the club.
And there you go. Time for some breakfast, more coffee then the papers until the sport starts on TV. Here’s to a good performance and three points today. More tomorrow.
