A week that began with Novak Djokovic defeating Rafael Nadal in what I believe to be the second best exhibition of tennis of the 21st century, behind only the Federer-Nadal Wimbledon final of 2008, is coming to end with Howard Webb trending on Twitter.
Starting on a positive note, the Australian open final showed exactly what Djokovic and Nadal have that Andy Murray still seems to lack, killer instinct and the ruthless will-to-win matched with the ability and skill that undoubtedly is also coursing through Murray. Will Murray become the first male British winner of a grand-slam since Fred Perry? I sincerely hope so, but an early defeat of a big rival and a mix of luck or injury woes may also have to fall in the Scots favour before his dream becomes a reality. Watching The Serb and The Spaniard slugging it out for nearly 6 hours, and still producing world class tennis at the end, was a joy to behold, and Djokovic’s mental strength carrying him over the line cannot be disputed as a fair result and the crowning of a worthy winner.
Also this week, should you be just awaking from a coma, John Terry was stripped of the England captaincy for a second time. Charged with the use of racist language in December, the Chelsea skipper will face trial after the European Championships in the summer, and it was the announcement of Terry’s day in court that prompted the FA to act. Many parties, including Terry himself and pundit Gary Neville, have questioned the FA making the call now and not when the charges were announced, with Neville going on to criticise the FA taking the decision away from manager Fabio Capello. The reason this decision was taken this week however, is a simple one, Terry has not been stripped of the captaincy as a punishment, but in light of the fact the case will still be hanging over him, and the squad he was set to lead, during the Euro’s.
Whether the decision to sack Terry as England captain for a second time is the right one, I cannot say, but I do understand the timing, unlike many who have commented on the subject. In this country our justice system is set up around the premise that all accused are innocent until proven guilty, but due to the ridiculous decision to have Terry stand trial after the European Championships, his position as captain was set to come under all sorts of scrutiny, and the FA couldn’t be seen to sit and watch the media circus increase.
This afternoon, John Terry and the drama surrounding him, took a back seat as his Chelsea team took on champions Manchester United without him in the side. United had the better of the first half, but lacked the finish to beat Petr Cech in the Chelsea goal, and through a moment of magic by Daniel Sturridge and a cruel deflection off of Jonny Evans, Chelsea led at the break. Two early second half goals later, Chelsea were 3-0 up, and United were left scratching their heads, and facing yet another Premier League defeat at Stamford Bridge, a ground they have often struggled at. Faced with embarrassing, and arguably unjust defeat, the team from Old Trafford came out swinging. With two penalties from Wayne Rooney and a header from Mexican Javier Hernandez, followed by a cracking save by much-maligned goalkeeper David De Gea, the champions had shown their fighting spirit and taken the most unlikely of points away with them.
The biggest talking points from the game are unquestionably the 4 realistic penalty shouts Howard Webb faced from the United forwards. Very early on, Ashley Young went down rather dramatically in the area, and my initial reaction was that he’d gone down under very little challenge. At half time, the incident was reviewed by the guys in the Sky Sports studio and Bosingwa, Chelsea’s make-shift left back, had a handful of Young’s shirt, and regardless of what you make of Young’s fall to the ground, the Portuguese international can count himself very lucky not to have been penalised. Later in the first half, with the score still locked at 0-0, Danny Welbeck burst through on goal for United, and he was halted by a stuttering challenge by debutant Gary Cahill. This time my initial reaction at full speed was penalty and red card, and regardless of pundits and commentators suggesting that the ball may have been played, or the offence may have taken place outside the area, I stand by that belief. Watching it back Cahill certainly doesn’t win the ball, and Welbeck is still on his feet after the initial contact. Cahill’s momentum and follow through takes him into the area where the United striker was still pursuing the ball, and this brings him down. My personal belief is that Cahill in effect committed two fouls, but only the second one resulted in Welbeck being felled, which would suggest a penalty should have been given. Whether or not you think that is rubbish, and a pro-United bias is unimportant though, as it was at the very least a free-kick, and Cahill’s participation in the rest of the game would have been in doubt, had Howard Webb come to the right decision.
After half time, Howard Webb did award Manchester United two penalties. The first of these, given for a foul on Patrice Evra by Sturridge, didn’t appear to me, on first glance, to be worthy of a spot-kick, but looking at the replay, Webb was 100% right to give it, as Evra protected the ball and Sturridge bundled him over. A few minutes later, Welbeck went down under the clumsy challenge of Branislav Ivanovic and won penalty number two. Seeing this one live I wasn’t sure what to think, and having watched the replay, it appears to be a very soft award in which the forward is looking for the contact. Rooney duly dispatched both penalties and of course Twitter’s reaction was to berate Howard Webb and dig-up every joke regarding him playing for, or transferring to, United to have ever existed… Yawn, Yawn, Yawn.
The reality of today’s match is not one that proves Webb to be biased, but there is every suggestion that he went in at half time and was either informed of his first half errors, or viewed the footage himself. In the second half, in giving United’s second penalty, Webb may have been subconsciously making up for the lack of a first half spot-kick, and I’ll say again, it’s not for me to say whether that is wrong or right. Chelsea fans will certainly say two wrongs don’t make a right, but the justifiable repost from United fans will be that had he given either of the penalties at 0-0, the game could have been very different.
For an interesting list of statistics that dispel the myth that United get the most penalties, have a look at http://www.myfootballfacts.com/Premier_League_Penalty_Statistics.html and interpret them however you like.
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