Foot & Soccer Soccer Match Reports, Football News
Morning all.
We’d as nicely begin Friday with a superb chortle. As I’m certain you’ve seen already, Arsenal have been charged with improper conduct by The FA after the gamers confronted referee Michael Oliver following the purple card issued to Myles Lewis-Skelly in the course of the 1-0 win over Wolves.
They are saying:
“Arsenal FC has been charged after its gamers surrounded a match official throughout their Premier League fixture towards Wolverhampton Wanderers FC on Saturday, 25 January.
“The membership failed to make sure that its gamers didn’t behave in an improper method across the forty third minute. Arsenal FC has till Monday, 3 February, to offer a response.”
What are you able to even say?! The gamers objected to a horrible resolution, one which has since ‘formally’ been deemed mistaken by the unbiased panel that overturned the purple card, so if the choice wasn’t mistaken within the first place they wouldn’t have had something to say to the referee. The truth that the cost got here after Lewis-Skelly had been cleared feels pointed, however at this stage it’s simply kinda humorous.
I’ve seen it stated we should always combat it or refuse to pay the high-quality, nevertheless it’s one we should always in all probability simply get out of the best way as shortly as attainable. Let’s put it behind us, transfer on, and never drag this out any longer. We now have much more necessary issues to take care of, an enormous sport on Sunday for instance, so ridding ourselves of as many exterior distractions as attainable – even when they’re a load of steaming horseshit – looks like one of the best method to me.
Perhaps The FA use a type of ‘Pay in three straightforward installments’ companions, and we will unfold out the associated fee in order to not impression all of the enterprise we’re going to get completed earlier than the switch window closes on Monday evening [you may insert your emoticon of choice here].
Hopefully, that is the final time we’ve got to speak a couple of ref or a choice or PGMOL to this extent once more, however I wouldn’t maintain my breath. Leaving these points of it apart, I believe we’ve additionally seen how – as a result of reality main broadcasters and a few very excessive profile pundits have cosied-up to Howard Webb – the protection of this incident has been skewed by these relationships.
On the very least, I might anticipate individuals like Gary Neville to have the info at their disposal after they discuss it, however they both haven’t bothered to try this, or they’ve intentionally ignored them. Perhaps it is a downside simply solved by turning off, not watching or paying consideration and so on, nevertheless it doesn’t take away them from their excessive profile positions on Sky the place they’re pressed for his or her opinions on each incident and each massive speaking level.
Their ‘narrative’ can then be bolstered after they do their numerous podcasts and it will get clipped up in snippets for social media and so on. Neville’s assertion that Michael Oliver had been taken off Sunday’s sport towards Man Metropolis was simply plain mistaken, he was by no means on it within the first place, so we’ve got a excessive profile pundit (maybe the best paid in England) bleating on about one thing he noticed throughout a cursory take a look at some headlines or a random Tweet. We are able to discuss refs or PGMOL being not adequate, however neither is that.
Tim made a superb level the opposite day too:
It’s nice when people who work for broadcasting shops which have reveals like ‘Ref Watch’ and who focus so, a lot of their match protection on refereeing choices begin questioning why there’s a lot deal with referees and conclude that it’s due to Mikel Arteta.
— Tim Stillman (@tim-stillman.bsky.social) January 30, 2025 at 11:58 AM
Anyway, as I stated I hope we’ve got a PGMOL free weekend – and the main target is absolutely on what occurs on the pitch. Our sport on Sunday is big, clearly, and we’ll hear a bit from Mikel Arteta forward of that later at the moment when he holds his pre-game press convention. There’s unlikely to be something new within the squad by then, and it stays to be seen how Arsenal would possibly pivot within the final couple of days now that it appears to be like like Ollie Watkins goes to remain at Aston Villa.
We’ll have all of the press convention tales over on Arseblog Information, and as ever we’ll have a preview podcast for you over on Patreon later this afternoon.
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In the meantime, the WSL switch deadline was final evening, and there have been a few strikes involving Arsenal. First, the arrival on mortgage of Chloe Kelly from Man Metropolis, a participant who has been frozen on the market and who will hopefully be a superb addition to the workforce from an attacking perspective. We additionally noticed right-back Laura Wienroither go the opposite approach, however in a separate deal. All going nicely, there must be some podcast evaluation of that for you at some stage at the moment.
Proper, I’ll depart it there for now. Have an incredible Friday wherever you’re. In case you haven’t had an opportunity to hear but, there’s a post-Girona Arsecast beneath. Completely happy listening.
