*Official* English Football Season 2009-2010

[BoyBrumby]

Have we reversed roles? Are you the doomer now ?

Been pretty much the same all the way, gently resigned but ever hopeful; think I lack your bi-polar swings of extreme optimism/pessimism. It's the lithium doing its job.

 

[Tom Halsey]

Chelsea an awful lot better in the first half though, looked a far better footballing side. Second half yeah United pressed really hard and Chelsea got a bit nervous but United never looked convincing, created very little.

Same goes for Chelsea in the first half though, goal aside. Both teams really created very little all game.

 

[Craig]

Handball! Who does this Macheda **** think he is, Craig ****ing Curran?!

He will never be fit to polish Craig Curran's boots.

 

[Pothas]

Same goes for Chelsea in the first half though, goal aside. Both teams really created very little all game.

Chelsea as an away side were in cotroll during the first half though, in the second half it was Uniteds job to press which they did but at no point did they outclass Chelsea.

 

[Loony BoB]

You know, I have to concede - maybe it was harder to call the offside than I initially thought. Apparently Ancelotti didn't see it either.

 

[grecian]

I have to say, how was that not a penalty in the first half when Neville fouled Drogba?

*Pedant alert* 'twas Anelka,

Was horrifically officiated this match, bit of an embarrassment for the "biggest match" of the "biggest league in the world" .

Dean was always a crap choice.................

 

[Craig]

That was not a penalty because the referee didn't want to give a penalty after not giving one earlier because he didn't want to keep his reputation up as a quick-draw penalty giver.

That just sums up the dire officiating in this match. It would be like in a Test match (assuming no UDRS) where an umpire gives a batsman out LBW, even though it wasn't out, and then when realising he was wrong, and not giving the next batsman out LBW who was plumb in front. I thought Park went to ground a little too easily for mine, and it was a fair challenge for the ball, so it was a fair call. The commentators were saying the ref were saying the ref's view was obstructed when Neville fouled Anelka (not Drogba, which for some reason I typed, I know some smart arse will say something).

 

[Craig]

*Pedant alert* 'twas Anelka,

Was horrifically officiated this match, bit of an embarrassment for the "biggest match" of the "biggest league in the world" .

Dean was always a crap choice.................

For some reason my brain thought it was Drogba. Don't know why though.

 

[roseboy64]

I have to say, how was that not a penalty in the first half when Neville fouled Drogba?

Because Drogba came on as a sub in the second half.

 

[roseboy64]

Not a handball btw. Hits his stomach and maybe elbow.

 

[Loony BoB]

That just sums up the dire officiating in this match. It would be like in a Test match (assuming no UDRS) where an umpire gives a batsman out LBW, even though it wasn't out, and then when realising he was wrong, and not giving the next batsman out LBW who was plumb in front. I thought Park went to ground a little too easily for mine, and it was a fair challenge for the ball, so it was a fair call. The commentators were saying the ref were saying the ref's view was obstructed when Neville fouled Anelka (not Drogba, which for some reason I typed, I know some smart arse will say something).

Regardless of how high Park went up and dramatised it for effect, I do think it was a penalty on Park anyway because, well, a guy lunged a leg in front of him when he was running and no matter how you fall down when you're banging into another player's leg in such a situation, it's still a foul. If anything he probably could have done better to make it look less dramatic, but either way, it wasn't given because the ref was scared.

EDIT: Finally looking at it, regardless of how Macheda scored it was something that Macheda would have done immensely well if he was asked to avoid scoring from there even with his arms chopped clean off. It was always going in. Maybe I'm biased in that regard, but I can't see how that could have not gone in.

EDIT: Ah well, at least Bent has scored. Fantasy football ftw. Even if I suck at it this year, Bent's gold.

 

[Craig]

Because Drogba came on as a sub in the second half.

Because I corrected myself in later post, did you not bother to read it? Player aside, I still thought it was a penalty.

At the risk of incurring Smitteh's wrath, I wouldn't be surprised iCiteh screw up against Burnley.

 

[roseboy64]

Because I corrected myself in later post, did you not bother to read it? Player aside, I still thought it was a penalty.

At the risk of incurring Smitteh's wrath, I wouldn't be surprised iCiteh screw up against Burnley.

Read it after I posted.

 

[Loony BoB]

And having passed the other stages, I'm just now edging towards "Acceptance"...

 

[GIMH]

Not a handball btw. Hits his stomach and maybe elbow.

 

[GIMH]

I've got a little game for everyone to play.

What do people who share the following opinions have in common?

1. It was an even game, Chelsea weren't the better team overall
2, Chelsea got the rub of the green, all the decisions went there way
3. Macheda never handballed it before his goal
4. Alex Ferguson isn't a massive Scottish client

 

[roseboy64]

I'm clearly blind then. And didn't see Cech hit the ball right into Macheda's stomach where it brushes his hand barely.

 

[Loony BoB]

Well, I looked at the replay on multiple occasions (yay for Sky+) and he definitely had it knock his upper chest and then roll off his arm, which wasn't immediately next to his chest or behind it, probably more in front and going forward. I don't think I saw a hand at all, though, although it could have been the poor Sky replays as the camera wasn't amazingly positioned. But if it wasn't in the box I doubt most refs would have called against it as when you get balls coming at you that quickly from that close a distance you don't have much time to think about it. As said, even if he had his arms lopped off he'd still have scored without knowing what he was doing. He basically just ran into the ball.

I've never said all the decisions went Chelsea's way at all, merely that to deny that if there was a different set of officials then things could have been amazingly different would be silly. They were horrific.

I don't really know what you mean about point #4 though.

 

[GIMH]

He used his arm!!!!!!!!!!!

Look - it counted and that's the way it goes. Man the **** up and admit it shouldn't have stood. All of our goals last night were questionable, who gives a ****, they counted and that's that. Sitting there in blind denial just exemplifies why everyone hates United. Because for every decent United fan there's a one-eyed supporter refusing to accept his team could ever be second-best or benefit from a bad refe

(edit, this was to Rose)

 

[GIMH]

Can I just clarify something...

Are people arguing that it wasn't a handball because it hit his arm, not his hand?

Really? REALLY?