The news came through yesterday that Manchester City’s Emmanuel Adebayor has been charged for violent conduct and also improper conduct following the game with Arsenal at the weekend. As far as Manchester City go, the match sent out a real message to football fans everywhere, both City and otherwise. Unfortunately, two of the main talking points in the game have now resulted in Adebayor’s inevitable suspension. Because of those two incidents, there are few people discussing the result of the game.
The charge for violent conduct comes as no surprise. Whatever the circumstances, you cannot tread or stamp on an opponent. Adebayor was roughed up by Arsenal players, and Robin Van Persie, who has put in his fair share of ugly tackles and been involved in equally ugly episodes, deserved a yellow card for his sliding scythe at Adebayor, but that should be no excuse for retribution. Adebayor can claim what he likes; the way it happened does not look to anyone like he did it by accident. His foot changes direction and as far as I can see, intentionally strikes Robin van Persie on the face. Retrospective bans are very much a hot topic right now with Eduardo’s ban from UEFA being overturned yesterday, and so they will continue to be with these latest charges on Adebayor.
The second charge of improper conduct is a more contentious issue. The question of whether fans should be able to take back what they give has again reared its head just as it does when players have sworn or gestured to fans in the crowd. After the abuse that Adebayor has received from Arsenal fans both before and after Adebayor left, it was somewhat likely that he would give some back to those same fans.
Should fans be allowed to say or do whatever they want to players and not expect any retaliation? It is an extremely tough judgment to make. Players are professionals and have the responsibility of being role models. They should be able to keep calm. However, in cases like on Saturday, emotion can easily take over a situation. You could see the emotion in Adebayor’s face, and after scoring a fine goal, it was a perfect opportunity for him to show his old club’s supporters what they were missing and what he felt they had failed to appreciate. It could be argued that a better way to have reacted was to celebrate with the City fans, but Adebayor has a tendency to take the more controversial option. Similarly, fans often get emotional at events like those that happened on Saturday. Nobody likes to see anyone score against their club, particularly one that has had issues with them before, and one who used to play for them. Songs and chants are as much a part of football as goalposts and pies, and are difficult to control. Songs that antagonise players will always happen, and whilst racism or other types of discrimination are never to be encouraged, it will be an almost impossible task to control fans and what they sing.
So do they have a right to complain when something like this happens? And should Adebayor have been charged retrospectively over this? It seems a bit rich for fans to complain about a footballer goading them when they have spent the whole game doing the same to that player. The only problem with the incident as far as I can see is that the inflamed supporters can cause injury to each other and to stewards. Objects were thrown at Adebayor, and one City steward was hospitalised. Nobody would like to see a child or infirm person to be involved in the crush that happened in the away end this weekend, but fans have a responsibility. A big crush rushing to get at someone would not be acceptable outside a football ground, so should not be acceptable inside it either. But short of installing riot squads in away ends up and down the country, there is little to be done about controlling a large group of incensed football fans.
As far as the punishment goes, I’m not so sure that it is particularly fair. Whilst every punishment has its first perpetrator, it seems odd to choose this case to do it when there have been several examples of it before. Indeed Thierry Henry when playing for Arsenal did an extremely similar thing when scoring against Tottenham. After running half the length of the pitch to score a great solo goal, Henry then doubled this distance back again to slide in front of the away end. This did not receive any retrospective punishment, and there are many other similar incidents that do not receive the same amount of attention as this one has. Perhaps understandable given the match and the teams involved, but highlights the lack of even press coverage in the media. I don’t think that this celebration deserves a separate ban. If it does then it sets a precedent that has to be repeated every time something similar happens. It is important not to dilute emotion in the game, and clamping down on goal celebrations endangers this. The rule about taking a shirt off being a yellow card offence is stupid in itself, but to further it with telling players where to celebrate goes past stupid.
In my opinion, Adebayor should get a three game ban for stamping on Van Persie’s head. The punishment for celebrating in front of Arsenal’s fans should be the same as the punishment he received when it happened. A yellow card. Perhaps a fine, in the same way that Didier Drogba incurred when throwing a coin back into the Burnley crowd would be sufficient.
Either way, let’s hope this commotion fades out soon, and allows football fans everywhere to comprehend the message that City’s performance sent us. They deserve that.
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