ESPN Soccernet - Correspondents - Manchester City- Rooney Charge a Joke

Posted by Wallace Poulter on 04/07/2011

Apparently common sense isn’t as common as you might think. Then again we are dealing with the FA where a lack of common sense appears to be a pre requisite. Once again the FA has the appearance of making things up as they go along.

The problem is not Rooney’s actions. He’s an incredibly talented football with what appears to be both an anger management issue and problems with impulse control. Many the times we have seen over the years Rooney swearing at the referee, getting petulant bookings and generally not being as professional as he could be. Frankly I’d like to see referees clamp down on the swearing on the field. There’s no need for it and clearly it is against the laws of the game. And Rooney’s impulse control issues get him splashed all over the gutter press.

The problem is the seemingly random nature of the charge being levied against him. Rooney appears to have been charged because he swore into a camera rather than the standard “everyone does it” swearing that happens on the field of play every game. Yes I’m looking at you John Terry. Compounding the issue is that Rooney wasn’t charged for an off the ball elbow incident against James McCarthy. In a match refereed by the walking disaster that is Mark Clattenburg, Rooney’s deliberate elbow should have been an immediate red card and the FA should have charged Rooney after the Wigan match. The FA’s excuse that they couldn’t charge Rooney, because the referee had seen the incident and ruled on the merits of the punishment within the game, hold little water given their previous action against Ben Thatcher and the infamous challenge on Pedro Mendes. The FA clearly can and has punished players for their actions on the field, even when seen by an official.

The FA was rightly condemned for their non action against Rooney after the elbow incident. The decision to charge Rooney over swearing into the camera has all the appearance of a makeup call by the FA. Ultimately what Rooney did was wrong and personally I’d like to see such action taken against other players. However the time and place to launch such an initiative is during the summer break with a directive to referees and a communication to the clubs that offensive, insulting and/or abusive language will be dealt with. What is patently unfair is for the FA to charge a player during the season without warning that the situation has changed. I’m aware that Rooney’s absence should help City in the FA Cup semi-final. It still doesn’t make it right.

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Comments

Posted by Chris on 04/07/2011

About time a decision went against them, it's not the fairest decision I've seen but we've been on the receiving end of a fair few, karma my friend.

Wallace Reply In the grand scheme of things yes I tend to agree.

Posted by Ad67 on 04/07/2011

Great article ( and that's from a United fan)Double standards as ever from the FA

Posted by Somervillain on 04/07/2011

Is this really so difficult for people to grasp? Nobody cares about swearing on the pitch during a match. Intentionally shouting obscenities into a camera during a live broadcast of a match is another matter. If I understand this correctly, you want the FA to come out this summer and tell players specifically that they can't scream f-bombs into television cameras? What other directives would you like to see the FA issue this summer while they're at it? Perhaps a specific initiative telling players not to carve up their wives/girlfriends/mistresses with steak knives? How about something along those same lines, but dealing with the issue of going through their teammates clothes in the dressing room and stealing valuables? COME ON.

Wallace Reply The issue is one of dealing with an in-game situation after the fact. The FA needs to be consistent.

Posted by jeff on 04/07/2011

Noe updates in over a month and then you have to write about Rooney. Disappointed. :(

Wallace Reply Hey Jeff, today was the day I wrote again. Rooney and the FA Cup Semi Final happened to be the most relevant issue of the day. I could have wrote how I believe City's win against Sunderland is potentially a bad situation for the match against United, but one of the reasons I stopped to recharge was I felt I was talking about tactics all the time which can be surmised as follows. No, City don't play three defensive midfielders, yes Tevez comes back to the ball too much and Mancini doesn't think Adam Johnson can defend...

Posted by Zorrin on 04/07/2011

Rooney looked right at me and told ME to eff off!

He told you to eff off. Midge Ure. George Galloway. The king of thailand.

He said "what? what? F*ck off! to us all, and we couldn't tell him to eff off back. I never bothered him

Thankfully, the FA have told him to eff off to the stands with his manager for a couple of games, to think about what he's done, on our behalf. A schoolboy punishment for a couple of arogant red-faced anger management cases who think they can bully the world on the telly and get away with it.

Posted by Daniel on 04/07/2011

Question for you, Wallace. You think that the win against Sunderland was bad for us? I think the psychological boost is immense. Additionally, it appears Mancini's opinion of Johnson is turning around regarding his defensive ability mostly due to Johnson actually starting to track back and at least pay attention to his defensive positions on the field of play.

Wallace Reply There will be a clamor for Johnson to start against United, with Silva on the other wing and City will get killed in the middle of the park. United is a very bad match up for City. A true inter diamond with de Jong, Barry and Yaya bossing the midfield (as long as the full backs provide width needed) is the way to beat United with the current squad. Yes City can win with Johnson and Silva playing, but I'd make United an 80/20 favourite in that scenario.

Posted by Blue Les on 04/07/2011

I'm amazed nobody has complained to sky for broadcasting this episode. Surely the director should have switched to another camera immediately and this would have been a non-event and new rules could have been drawn up in the close season. Instead the media witch hunt backs the FA into a corner so that they are damned if they do nothing and damned if they do. Exactly how the media love things to happen so they can take the opposite stance as though they are the guardians of all that is good when in fact they are the guardians of all that is bad.

Posted by Butler on 04/07/2011

I'm a little disappointed that you didn't write more about OUr team instead of the neighbours. is this a Man City blog or not?
Anyways, I can see where you're going with the Inter diamond, but do we really want Nani and Valencia running straight at Zabaleta and Kolarov?
Both have been somewhat unconvincing on the defensive side, and they both love to go foward. I really don't think that Toure and Barry are fast enought to handle that.
As for the 5-0 win, lets just say that this is what happens when Milner and Barry don't play....
I'd also love to hear your opinion on Joey Barton's comments.

Wallace Reply I think the Rooney ban is the most relevant news item to City at the moment as it means he'll miss the FA Cup Semi-Final...

The fullbacks would certainly put in tremendous shifts should Mancini use the diamond in the game.

Funny you mention Milner as I think he's been played out of position all year. I'd be very curious to see what would happen in a 4-4-2 with Johnson and Silva on the wings, de Jong and Milner in the middle and Yaya partnered with Kompany in the back. That would allow Milner the freedom to create as he did at Villa.

Meanwhile Barton's a tool. I have no time for him.

Posted by wayde on 04/07/2011

i am in agreement with Wallace here.
I don't see any other sport where the referees get so much abuse. In cricket, rugby, rugby league the referees are treated with respect and if you were to touch one or swear at one, that would be your day done.
The other thing is that kids are growing up watching and emulating their idols, have you seen the way kids play their footbal now? even z grade football is full of this crap.
surely you would need your head read if you wanted to be a football ref?
which bodes well for the future, more clattenburgs...

Wallace Reply The standard of refereeing both regular and assistant is quite abominable in the Premier League. I've no interest in being the man in the middle but I could do a better job of running the line than this lot - a statement I make in the full knowledge of how hard the role is.

Posted by KRS on 04/08/2011

Thank you for this, Wallace. In a footballing world where supporters are quick to condemn other clubs than their own, it is refreshing to see a City fan actually speak the case of a fierce rival. You show an admirably unbiased view on the matter that I doubt I would ever see in your counterpart over at the United blog.

My main problem with this whole ordeal is the fact that FA head honcho David Bernstein some years ago was the French Connection chairman that oversaw the FCUK-campaign, and has therefore personally been responsible for rubbing the F-word into the public's faces. So I can't help but feeling that he couldn't care less about Rooney's swearing, and has rather punished him just for being Wayne Rooney.

United supporter

Posted by Sam on 04/08/2011

Couldnt disagree more about the Rooney suspension. You cant yell the f bomb straight into a camera and expect no ramifications. Saying that the player should not be suspended because of other incidents makes no sense. Sure there have been times when the FA got it wrong but this wasnt one. Take Drogba a couple of years back in the CL.
As for the Refs, they havent been great but they dont get much support from the FA or FIFA. Playing football in Australia we got a yellow card for swearing on the field and a straight red for swearing at the ref. We also were not allowed to approach the ref in a disrespectful manner, the captain was supposed to question him.
Why cant these type of things be bought into football. I am sick of seeing 10 footballers surrounding the ref after a bad tackle, waving their hands and screaming. If FIFA or the FA get aggressive this blight on the game would be gone and we would only have the divers left to deal with.

Wallace Reply Completely agree with your second point Sam, it just takes a ref with balls to start issuing cards.

Posted by Greg on 04/08/2011

I agree about this looking like a make up call, but since Rooney should have gotten a ban for the elbow it is kind of justice. The inablility of the refs to get offsides and handballs correct is what bothers me more. I thouht the call that gave Rooney the pemalty was horrible, but no one has really mentioned it. It potentially changed the game so I would say Lee Mason is the one who deserves a 2 match ban.

Posted by Danny on 04/08/2011

I agree with you Wallace that more consistency is necessary. In the past 2 months there have been 4 examples of player misconduct on and off the field that I can think of off the top of my head. Wilshire getting into street fights, no reaction, Cole's version of duck hunt with the intern, no reaction, Rooney's elbow, mute reaction, and Rooney swearing. The punishments are so far from consistent that the FAs attempt to gain "Respect" is actually making them lose it. Let's be honest, if the FA are trying to protect people, let's start with some of the chants that echo much louder then Rooney's hissy fit last weekend!

Posted by Martin Nazimek on 04/09/2011

Wallace, good to hear from you again.
Here is what I just don't understand; united's team is not as good as our team if you compare player for player. Yet as a team they are better then everybody. Is there such a distance of manager ability between bacon face and mancini bc I believe our squad is way better yet no team can get close to united. So which is it? And with the absence of Rooney I believe we have a way better shot of winning. He always finds a way to score against us. CTID

Wallace Poulter It's a couple of things. First of all remember that City's team has been together only since the summer. You can't expect the club to really hit its potential for at least another year. if City bring in a maximum of two players in the summer then we'll know the club is starting to get where it needs to be.

Second, Ferguson has built a better squad than anyone else with parts that fit together. Park Ji Sung is a great example. If you listed the top 100 players in the Premier League I don't think he's be on it and yet Ferguson uses him in crucial matches because he complements his team mates so well.

This is City's long term challenge. To find bit players who fit and are willing to take that role. Zabaleta is a good example of this. He doesn't make the team if City are at full strength, yet his ability to come in and mesh well is vastly under rated.

Posted by Butler on 04/09/2011

Zabaleta doesn't make th team if city are at full strength? Who does, Richards? You must be joking. i've seensome good stuff from him this year and he's certainly much improved, but he isn't quite up to Zabaleta's standard.
It would be totally uneccessary to move YY Toure to the middle of defense. Lescott is actually performing quite well despite the negative press, and if we drop him his confidence would get shot to pieces. Then Kompany would also have to get used to a new partner. And Toure would be moved from striker to attacking midfielder to defensive midfielder to centre-back all within a year. Not worth the hassle IMO

Wallace Reply Boateng would start at right-back in a full strength City team. Lescott remains a player who plays the wrong side of an attacker and gets caught out.

Posted by James W. on 04/11/2011

Hey Wallace, great article again! I want your opinion on who the better player is, Silva or Adam Johnson? Also, who is more important to the squad? Thanks.

Wallace Reply See my next piece which actually answers this question...

Posted by jason wilcox on 04/12/2011

i would suggest that more than two players will be brought into the squad over the summer Wallace.

we are not matching up against the top teams in the league very well. yes great result against liverpool at Eastlands...but they were not a team under hodgson. lucky to survive against spurs in the first encounter. never really got close to beating arsenal...tight against chelsae at eastlands and beaten well at stamford bridge. best performance was at old trafford losing to rooney goal. spurs at eastlands...well lets hope so and that Tevez is fit to play
i dont think we are going to see balotelli score 20 in the PL no matter how much he works on his game. it wouldnt be a surprise if we see 4 players recruited....and they shouldnt all be world class. we need, as you say, fringe players complimenting the talent that is working/strong potential to work.
subbing the substitute last night against liverpool for the same reasons as i would suggest he did it to robinho...any comments wallace

Wallace Reply Give Balotelli time to mesh with a strike partner and most importantly Silva then we can judge him

Posted by micky2times on 04/14/2011

You are forgetting one important fact - there is one rule for United and one for all the rest. Rooney deserves what he got and more, Ferguson as well. They get away with murder EVERY WEEK! United fans should be embarrassed with the favoritism they are shown all the time. And leave Zabaleta alone, a good honest player, and if we had more of his ilk we would be alot better off.
Also if Milner is played out of his position, what is his position? He is not bringing much to the table. Barry has no position.

Wallace Reply Milner should be in the center of the park.

Posted by Durk on 04/15/2011

Rooney swore at the grannies, the grandads, the young lads, the young daughters, sitting at home watching football.
He swore into their home.
I suspect he is very sorry because by now, someone will have pointed that out to him.

Wallace Reply And it was wrong, no disagreement there. If it was me, I would have fined him a week's wages and given him a two-game ban that was suspended. That way you set the precedent, give due notice to the players that the situation will be enforced and don't impact the game on the field.

Posted by matt on 04/16/2011

a united fan here.. and i totally agree with your article. rooney should have been punished for his elbow, irrespective of whether the referee saw it or not (the same goes with gerrard with his elbows on michael brown and danny welbeck). however i disagree rooney should have been given a two game ban for swearing into a camera. there needs to be a clear and concise directive at the beginning of the season, no matter how patently obvious it may seem to the rest of us that swearing into a camera is a stupid idea. maybe its just the lax attitude people have toward swearing in australia (im from sydney) but to be honest, ive heard worse from my university lecturers and i think swearing is part and parcel of the game. as long as it isn't directed at anyone specific (coaches, referees etc.) then it should be allowed to go on.

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