Is Javier Mascherano ‘the Dumb One’?
The headlines haven’t been kind to Liverpool doughnut Javier Mascherano in the wake of Liverpool’s crushing 3-0 defeat to Manchester United. “Dumbest Man On The Planet!” blasted The Sun, and the others weren’t much more complimentary either.
The man himself has since spoken out in disbelief at Steve Bennett’s decision to send him packing at Old Trafford — and his manager Rafa Benitez has backed the Argentine all the way in protest at the dismissal. Live on TV, Andy Gray too was keen to voice his disapproval at Mascherano’s ‘harsh’ punishment for ‘asking the referee a question.”
It appears that this incident has split the nation. Some people think it was the softest sending off of the season, while others insist he had to go. What corner do you lie in?
Personally, I am very much of the opinion that Mascherano got exactly what he deserved on Sunday afternoon. His blatant show of dissent and lack of respect towards Bennett and his two linesmen throughout the first 45 minutes was quite simply horrible to see.
Not once, not twice, not even three times but several more, TV cameras caught the Argentinian midfielder berating the officials — sometimes laughing in disbelief at them and at other times angrily questioning their decisions. Then, while on a yellow card, Mascherano saw it fit to run 20 yards to question Bennett’s caution of Fernando Torres.
No, he didn’t swear. No, he didn’t wave his fists. But he did show dissent and he did try his utmost to provoke the referee. Finally, Bennett snapped at the constant badgering and I don’t blame him one bit.
Is that the kind of example we want Premier League footballers to set? I don’t think so.
The furore over Ashley Cole’s disrespect towards Mike Riley no doubt played a part in this dismissal but surely that is not the issue we should be discussing?
It can never be right nor acceptable for professional sportsmen to scream and shout at the match officials, no matter what the sport. It sets the poorest example possible to children at grassroots level and has the power to make life extremely difficult for referees at all levels of the game.
Mascherano’s subsequent reluctance to leave the pitch was an embarrassment. That too, was the kind of behaviour we should not tolerate from our Premier League players. I hope that the FA come down hard on the Argentine by increasing his one match ban and fining him heavily.
For a player of Mascherano’s experience to get himself sent off in such an important game in such a foolhardy way really was stupid.
We shouldn’t be talking about whether or not his final approach to Steve Bennett warranted a yellow card or not. We should be ensuring this is kind of behaviour (swearing or not) should not be tolerated any longer.
It’s time to stop making excuses. It’s time to come down hard on the players and managers who bring football into disrepute….
Previously published at 4sportsake.com.
Topics: English Premier League, Liverpool, Manchester United
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Mr. Adrian Clarke the first one that should stop playing in the premiership is Rooney then! I believe one out of three words he speaks in the games is f..k, not to mention his ”performance” towards his team-mate Ronaldo some years back in international level!!!!
March 24th, 2008 @ 17:02rooney got what he deserved at the time. and now he controls his temper more than before. it was just a simple case of trying to prove your point too much. mr bennet finally listened…!!!
March 24th, 2008 @ 17:14Sure, if you want to view Mascherano’s behaviour in isolation and in terms of black and white, then it was right for the referee to send him off. However, when viewed in the context of the premiership season then the decision was ridiculous.
March 24th, 2008 @ 17:15Firstly, the issue of consistency. All throughout the season, players have been chastising referees up and down the country in a manner far more aggressive than Mascherano did yesterday (Terry is an obvious example). Moreover, if the incidents prior to his sending-off merited dissent, then surely that of other players, such as Ronaldo throwing his hands up in exasperation at decisions that went against also constitute dissent and merit a booking.
Secondly, it is not against the laws of the game to ask a referee why a particular decision was made – they enforce the law but are not above and, presuming that there is a legitimate reason for their decision, they should be happy to explain it.
Thirdly, the referee should have at least warned Mascherano that he was walking a fine line before sending him off. If you look at all the incidents of him chipping away at the referee, in none of them did Steve Bennett take him aside for a quiet chat to warn him that his behaviour was unacceptable. A referee is there to officiate the match but part of that includes controlling the game and setting the tone – sending someone off for back chat is a draconian and unproductive way to go about it. And it ruined an important game of football. Given that Alex Ferguson was banging on about the importance of the referee in the run-up to the game, it looks like Bennett was in his pocket. And would the ref have sent the player off if it had been Gerrard or another English player? A hypothetical question but I’d like to see the stats on that one.
As for Mascherano’s behaviour, I don’t condone it but think the referee handled it badly and it could all have been averted if the ref had controlled. Now, of course, it looks like Mascherano is going to be an example of in the way that Ashley Cole was not. There’s justice for you.
Adrian you tart if you cant cope with a little raised voices then football isnt the sport for you try chess or badminton something girly.
March 24th, 2008 @ 17:42Mascherano should not have been booked asking a referee a question chelsea do this every week without being sent of it is not one rule for one and one for another team. look at the incident again
He was booked for persistent arguing and abuse, not JUST for “asking the question”. He was in the ref’s face all afternoon and can have no argument.
Adrian says this issue has split the nation. He’s right but from all the things I’ve be reading it’s something like an 80%-20% split, with the 80% agreeing with the decision.
It’s a shame this has overshadowed the game. Utd were well on top and a goal up by the time the sending-off came.
Many teams cope well with 10 men (Ask Arsenal about Birmingham a few weeks ago). However, the fact is that Utd were different class to Liverpool.
It could easily have been 5 or 6. We heard a lot about Torres and Gerrard, forever the great hopes of Liverpool, before the game. Neither made any impression.
As Alan Hansen said, Utd’s defence is, by a distance, the best in the Premiership. Ferdinand had Torres in his pocket for the entire match.
Ferguson rotated the squad yet again and still came up with the required quality. Utd don’t depend on just 2 players and the gap in quality is obvious.
Benitez has a lot of work to do to bridge that gap.
March 25th, 2008 @ 02:30Any nation divided on this issue is a nation I want no part of (I’m not a Brit, btw). Mascherano sprinted across the pitch – throwing off his teammates attempts to stop him – to get in Bennett’s face, as he had already done numerous times in the game, and question a call after Torres had already been booked for dissent with regard to that call. He then proceeded to ignore Bennett’s multiple requests to get on with the game. Yellow card.
Meanwhile in Australia the top scorer of the season in the A-League got nothing for punching a linesman in the nuts.
March 25th, 2008 @ 11:55he should be sent off after getting the 1st yellow card and saying 25987 times f**k off at the referee!!!
March 25th, 2008 @ 16:36