The Ramsey broken leg

For anyone who saw the last weekends football, they’ll probably be familiar with this image

   Which was of course Aaron Ramsey being on the end of a tackle which broke his leg meaning that no replay could be seen.  As an Arsenal fan who didn’t know the score before watching MOTD I was gutted.  Not only had Arsenal once again lost a good player too long term injury but by the reactions on the players faces it looked like they would crumble similarly to how they performed when the same thing happended to Eduardo at Birmingham.  Luckily for me this didn’t happen and Arsenal went to to win 3-1.  Possibly in part to a seemingly angry Sol Campbell pushing the team on, but who knows. 

Now as an Arsenal fan I’ve got used to Arsene Wenger moaning after a game.  Most of the time you can kinda see his point but I wish he wasn’t so whingy about it.  So when I saw Arsene bemoaning the Ramsey incident and criticising Stoke I thought it was another of these incidents and I found the things Wenger was accusing Stoke of were a bit harsh.  However after some time I am inclined to agree with him. 

To anyone who has watched Arsenal for a while it is obvious that the main tactic for teams such as Bolton or Stoke against Arsenal is to rough them up and intimidate them as much as possible.  This is understandable as normally if these teams try and compete against Arsenal they eventually get outplayed and lose.  However to instill a mentality of tough tackling and ‘roughing up’ the other side is inevitably going to lead to an injury such as Ramseys.  You could see on the face of Shawcross that he was distraught about what happended and the whole Stoke team were quick to defend his integrity but surely what happended is a result of the way both he and his Stoke team-mates were asked to play.  As both Wenger and Fabregas pointed out in post match interviews there comes a point where it can’t be coincidence anymore.  The amount of injuries Arsenal have recieved of this nature has seriously affected the teams performances.  Is the answer to stop tough tackling?  No, but the players do need more protection.  For example I found the fact that there were no bookings in the recent Stoke v Arsenal FA Cup shocking.  The amount of times Stoke players would commit cynic tackles with no attempt on the ball and no recieve a card was stupid.

Ultimately I can understand Wenger’s whinging and frustration.  Too often Arsenal players are hacked out a game and pick up injuries that keep them out for a while, putting a stop to any momentum and changing the team.  Yes Arsenal need to toughen up but they also need protection from the referres.  Theo Walcott is a good example.  Many defenders the last two seasons have resorted to cynical fouls to stop him.  This has resulted in alot of small injuries and a big loss of confidence.  So overall although Wenger was having his usual moan, it looks like he had a very good point.