I truly believe that if we get rid of Drogba (and I am not saying that we should) this will change. There is no doubt that he is a marked man where diving/conning is concerned, and the refs are looking out for him/us.Platini has virtually issued an order !!
Coombsie - the Drogba situation is a moveable feast for the Media in this country and for UEFA when they feel inclined to go into ‘teaching a lesson’ mode or, as with his sending off at the Nou Camp, they sense an opportunity to alter the odds after previously priming the official. I agree he is a marked man, but so would be the next should he also put himself about a bit and you only have to compare the Media reaction over ’divers’ Robben, Ronaldo and Gerrard to see that a player’s club has everything to do with the skewed perception of the so-called cheats in the game.
If further proof were needed regarding punishment for unacceptable behaviour just look at the sentence called for in Drogba’s case and measure it against the persistent dissent and bad language Wayne Rooney dishes out week after week. Another example, on the tackling front this time, is the leniency Paul Scholes gets (he can’t tackle properly, bless him) when compared to Mikel, who at one stage this season could hardly contest a ball without risking a yellow card.
Whilst you may not get many people supporting the argument that Platini has virtually issued an order, I’ll back you at every turn because nobody will convince me that Ovrebo was not influenced by UEFA over the awarding of penalties in our semi-final. We’ve had grassy knoll conspiracy theories scoffed at and the Barca sending off cited as contra evidence, but all it took was a cup-handed word to the unworldly-wise Norwegian and three or four decent penalty claims went begging.
I can hear Liam laughing from here, so maybe he will allow me to take this a stage further by providing an equivalent scenario from a sport that eliminates outside influence better than any other I know. Okay, it’s chess and it’s boring, but just imagine two Grandmasters in a Candidates semi-final with one of them taking a piece legitimately only to find his opponent simply picking it up and placing it back on the board and then, after he appeals to the arbiter, being told to accept the clear breach of rules and play on. I’m guessing that there would be uproar in the arena and, when it happened for a second and third time, complete pandemonium would break out.
Football’s general acceptance of the instant rule change, which in this instance was the consequence of Ovrebo’s inability to either give penalties or even acknowledge the evidence put before a worldwide audience, is mind boggling in its self-indulgence. The fact that it is often supported by a Media that is content to accept the outcome, because it also serves their purpose (controversy, spectacle or the ‘perfect‘ final), makes UEFA’s position easier to protect. They simply lie low, until we all calm down and until the next time when, dependent upon situation and requirement, they use the same insidious approach to get what they want. There is no answer to this unwanted interference, whatever the level, because the authorities are not being held accountable and never will be. Sad to say, technology will continue to be ignored because it will reveal too many imperfections for the liking of those who like a final say or a say in a final.
