Arsenal

[Steve007]

That went well.

Liege might be a handful, but if our imperious form continues we should be ok.

Last time we played them we beat them about 7-0 at their own stadium. I was there and watched Eddie McGoldrick score a wonder goal! Eddie McGoldrick!

[Oh Danny Boy]

i wondered why Arsene Wenger invited the French Olympic diving team to train with his squad last week...

[hercules]

It's sad to see Eduardo getting singled out by the press and commentators last night, yes he dived and i hope he never does it again but how many times did Ronaldo dive during his Man utd career without getting hounded like this? It just feels very anti arsenal tbh as i could roll a list of players that are divers yet this is the first time that i can think off where it has been completely blown up.

[Swallow]

I was hoping, purely selfishly, for at least one exotic team in the group so an away visit would be necessitated. Shame for me, good for the team.

[Throbin Hood]

It would be worth it for UEFA to ban Eduardo for 2 games purely to force them into action whenever Gerrard et al get a bad inner ear infection.

[futureshock]

It's sad to see Eduardo getting singled out by the press and commentators last night, yes he dived and i hope he never does it again but how many times did Ronaldo dive during his Man utd career without getting hounded like this? It just feels very anti arsenal tbh as i could roll a list of players that are divers yet this is the first time that i can think off where it has been completely blown up.

From an outside perspective, Wenger's Arsenal are highly respected because they play football in a more (for want of a better word) artistic way. People are pissed because they, of all teams, aren't expected to behave in a cheating manner. Mainly because they don't need to.

There's also probably a personal annoyance because the cheat in question is somebody who we all fell sorry for a while back. Nobody likes to feel a fool.

[dizogg]

Also more simply, is the great footage and obviousness of a dive. Most dives involve some contact, and more of a "went down easily" situation. If someone is running fast and someone touches them then you can give them the benefit of the doubt. But from all angles this looks like an obvious dive and he even gives a cheeky smile afterwards...

[cantonarv]

It's sad to see Eduardo getting singled out by the press and commentators last night, yes he dived and i hope he never does it again but how many times did Ronaldo dive during his Man utd career without getting hounded like this? It just feels very anti arsenal tbh as i could roll a list of players that are divers yet this is the first time that i can think off where it has been completely blown up.

Yeah Ronaldo got no stick at all !

[g wings]

Yeah Ronaldo got no stick at all !

Yes, but he's a c**t...

[hercules]

Ronaldo was notorious but he didn't get as much stick for the amount of dives he commited week in week out. Eduardo's cheeky wink afterwards reminded me of Ronaldo and that f****d me right off! I don't want any arsenal player diving. I'm just pointing out that he dived once and is being singled out when i've watched certain players dive for years and get away with it.

[SeanR]

Ronaldo was notorious but he didn't get as much stick for the amount of dives he commited week in week out. Eduardo's cheeky wink afterwards reminded me of Ronaldo and that f****d me right off! I don't want any arsenal player diving. I'm just pointing out that he dived once and is being singled out when i've watched certain players dive for years and get away with it.

Here, at least, he's being singled out BY arsenal fans for doing it, because we wouldn't troll any of the other football threads when someone else does it.

and because it's disappointment, rather than any other emotional response to the act itself.

[phresh]

I think the reason why it’s been highlighted more is because it was from a player who most fans had certain amount of good will for after the leg break incident. Most fans thought Ronaldo and Gerrard were cunts regardless of whether they dive so they went from ‘cunts’ to ‘diving cunts’ whereas Eduardo has gone from ‘Nice bloke who got his leg broke’ to ‘diving cunt’, skipping out the in between part.

I don’t particularly agree with whoever said people were outraged because it goes against Arsenal’s footballing ethos or anything. Eboue has got to be one of the worst divers in the PL, maybe not in frequency but he is hilariously bad, and obvious, at doing it. Arsenal fans do hold him to task for it though so this isn’t a swipe at them.

It is a blatant knee jerk action from UEFA (assuming there is any action) as I can’t believe that this is the first penalty box dive in the tournament, but if this incident (and following outrage ) is what it takes to make UEFA tackle the problem then it’s all good.

Anyway, massive game tomorrow and I’m going to miss it What formation are you guys likely to line up with if Fabregas is out?

[SuperCat]

I'm no Arsenal fan but if he's now been charged then they better do it for all dives here on out. Ronaldo, as said, got away with it more than anyone. I guess it's UEFA though, they have more balls than the FA.

[dizogg]

I think its a hard thing to punish though. Who says you're not allowed to fall over? You might lose your balance? Its very hard to prove someone dived. Especially if they just go down and don't actively ask for a penalty/free kick. Theres all kinds of reasons you might legitimately fall over in football other than getting fouled, you might trip yourself up, you might feel an injury tighten up or something, get cramp. How can you prove somebody has definitely dived? Its difficult.

[cloutbasher]

Ronaldo was notorious but he didn't get as much stick for the amount of dives he commited week in week out. Eduardo's cheeky wink afterwards reminded me of Ronaldo and that f****d me right off! I don't want any arsenal player diving. I'm just pointing out that he dived once and is being singled out when i've watched certain players dive for years and get away with it.

I think it's more that the replay is fairly conclusive. Ronaldo's dives tended to involve some contact and then him flinging himself down, which makes it hard to say conclusively that he's cheating - the problem is that there is no contact in this one at all. They were probably waiting for one like this in a high-profile game to set an example.

[SeanR]

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/footbal...on-1778552.html

Uefa today charged Arsenal striker Eduardo with diving to win a penalty against Celtic and he could now face missing the Gunners' first two Champions League group games.

[Nate Dogg III]

I think it's that it happened against a Scottish team that might have summat to do with it bearing in mind this guardian piece:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/au...c-dive-ban-uefa

The governing body has precedent behind it. In 2007 it banned the Lithuania midfielder Saulius Mikoliunas for two matches after replays showed that he had dived to win a penalty during his country's 3-1 defeat in a Euro 2008 qualifier away to Scotland. It was the first time a player had been retrospectively found guilty of behaving, according to Uefa statute, "with the obvious intent to cause any match official to make an incorrect decision". But there have since been other cases of players being suspended for cheating.

Scotland were so impressed by Uefa's stance on Mikoliunas that they adopted similar measures to combat "simulation" in their domestic game. The Rangers striker Kyle Lafferty was given a two-match ban for feigning injury, after video evidence proved he had not been butted by Aberdeen's Charlie Mulgrew.

The head of the Scottish FA (I was going to put SFA there but thought everyone would think I meant Gruff Rhys) clearly has a bee in his bonnet about simulation in general:

"Since I came into this post, I have raised the issue of simulation time and time again – both here in Scotland and with Fifa and Uefa. I don't think that I have received enough support in my efforts to eradicate what I believe to be one of the most serious threats to the integrity of football. Last night showed exactly why we must take this issue seriously."

Smith wants Uefa to act retrospectively to punish the Croatia international, in the same way the organisation used video evidence to punish the Lithuania striker Saulius Mikoliunas, who dived to earn a spot-kick against Scotland at Hampden Park in September 2007.

The SFA also recently applied that precedent to sanction the Rangers striker Kyle Lafferty, who feigned being butted by the Aberdeen defender Charlie Mulgrew during a Scottish Premier League game in May.

"We have shown the courage to use retrospective punishment when it comes to simulation and I would urge Uefa to do so in this instance. Everything that can be done to stamp it out must be done – starting right now," said Smith.

"Last night's incident also brings the whole issue of video evidence to the fore. I see absolutely no reason at all why we cannot use technology to assist referees – particularly in live games.

"I know that some people say that TV evidence would damage the flow of a game, but I believe the proposal that I put forward to both Fifa and Uefa whereby football would adopt a similar approach to tennis in offering a set number of challenges can work.

"We need a serious debate on these issues. Everyone in football has a responsibility to set the right example to our youngsters. We can talk all we want about fair play campaigns, but taking action would be a much more powerful deterrent and would send the right message to players everywhere."

[Lucky]

It would be nice to see a bit of consistencey now, the only way to stop players diving is if they start getting booked/sent off/or banned after using video evidence. Fining them would be completely pointless.

Not quite sure why UEFA decided to start with Eduardo, he's hardly what you would call a 'diver' even though this dive in question was a bit of a shocker.

It'll be interesting to see what UEFA do once the usual suspects (Drogba, Ronaldo etc.) get in on the act.

As they've decided to go down this road, lets hope they show some balls and a bit of consistency.

[SeanR]

it's like being faced with aggression from a gang.

You target their smallest member* and give them a fucking good kicking**, this then puts the shits up the rest of them, and they scarper***.

* eduardo.

** two match ban

*** stop diving

[Lucas]

Mopstar, I want to carry on riding the optimism express! What's going to happen in tomorrow's game?

[mop]

Mopstar, I want to carry on riding the optimism express! What's going to happen in tomorrow's game?

And I want to keep that train running but tomorrow will be a tough one alright. With Fab out it doesn't help...

BUT, I don't know, I have a good feeling about tomorrow. I think all this diving stuff might help galvanize the team even further, get a good siege mentality going which would be of a great help on an away trip to Manchester.

It'll be tough, and a proper test for us but I can see a postive outcome for us. Maybe.

A draw wouldn't be a bad result at all.

Hey, a win would be even better...

[Mars]

He should try it again, at Old Trafford.

[mop]

I could see the whole of Manchester being submerged in the vast amount of bile that would be spat if such a thing happened

It'd be quite amazing. For all the wrong reasons.

[Swallow]

Thing is, no-one else will be punished for it because if there's *some* contact, however slight, then a dive can't definitively be called as such. Eduardo's was clear-cut, the next incident with Drogba or Torres or whoever won't be.

[CrispyPhallus]

Wenger is a twat thought, saying he's always fought against cheating.

If that's true then he would have sacked Pires for diving against Pompey when Gunners were one-nil down at home - got the penalty to draw the game and ultimately went on to win the league undefeated.

I know - it still hurts me!

[carlito]

Thing is, no-one else will be punished for it because if there's *some* contact, however slight, then a dive can't definitively be called as such. Eduardo's was clear-cut, the next incident with Drogba or Torres or whoever won't be.

There is nothing in any of the angles I have seen that conclusively prove there was no contact. I'm not saying it wasn't a dive, but it's laughable how people are talking like there are some arbitrary rules on what makes one dive worse than the next.

I just can't get my head around the fact he has been fined for diving, its ridiculous. The last time I checked the harshest punishment for simulation was a yellow card. Not a fine or a ban or fucking community service, a yellow card - so what the fuck is going on here?

What is different about this incident? Simulation is an effort to dupe the referee into thinking something that didn't happen happened. Is the punishment worst because he was successful in doing it? Would he have still been fined if the penalty wasn't given? I think not. So it seems we are in a situation where the competence of the referee is a factor in how severe an offence is punished, which is fucking barking.

Maybe UEFA are saying that because the dive led to a penalty it is worse than a dive anywhere else on the pitch? Perhaps new rules need to be drawn up to clarify which areas of the pitch result in worse penalties than others. Perhaps fouls should go unpunished in the centre circle as they don't have too much of an impact of the outcome of the game do they?

This whole thing has been an embarassing farce.

[Lucas]

And I want to keep that train running but tomorrow will be a tough one alright. With Fab out it doesn't help...

BUT, I don't know, I have a good feeling about tomorrow. I think all this diving stuff might help galvanize the team even further, get a good siege mentality going which would be of a great help on an away trip to Manchester.

It'll be tough, and a proper test for us but I can see a postive outcome for us. Maybe.

A draw wouldn't be a bad result at all.

Hey, a win would be even better...

I'd like to see Arshavin move into Cesc's position. I can't help but feel his talent is wasted on the left. That said Pires did alrght coming in from there.

The real tester is at the back I think. As good as we've been so far this season, the teams we've played haven't exactly been great. Huge game for the fledgling Vermaelen/Gallas partnership.

A draw would suit me fine, a win would be ace.

[Lucas]

I just got in. I think I picked the wrong moment to turn the radio on.

Almunia gives away a penalty and then Diaby scores an own goal. Brilliant.

More Arshavin magic please.

[Lucas]

Bollocks.

Difficult to know what to think about this one. We had enough to have won the match, but were undone by two rash moments. Disappointing, but ought to have enough to be up there at the end of the season.

[hauk]

Despite the way we lost I was less depressed after this loss than the Champions League semi. We looked pretty good for most of the game and that was without Cesc, Nasri and Walcott. Arshavin did seem a little isolated on the left and I wish he was involved more. Thought Man U were poor, especially going forward - although they always have a slow start to the season so maybe they'll improve...