Match Day Thread Manchester City v Southampton, FA Cup Semi Final, Wembley, 25th April 17.15 live on BBC and TNT Sports

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I have watched it so many times and tried to see it that way, also looked for the elbow, can't see that either, but I see THB's foot making first contact.
Downes turns into him and swings his arm. His elbow catches him full in the face. THB does make contact first but the player isn't on his way down otherwise Downes would have missed him. So that's irrelevant. It's one of those where I don't think it was intended by Downes and maybe an element of misfortune to it but it has to be a red because he's used excessive force. I'd consider it more serious foul play than violent conduct as he is making a challenge for the ball but it's a 3 game ban regardless.
 
Downes turns into him and swings his arm. His elbow catches him full in the face. THB does make contact first but the player isn't on his way down otherwise Downes would have missed him. So that's irrelevant. It's one of those where I don't think it was intended by Downes and maybe an element of misfortune to it but it has to be a red because he's used excessive force. I'd consider it more serious foul play than violent conduct as he is making a challenge for the ball but it's a 3 game ban regardless.
I suppose it depends upon which bit of contact the ban is for, the FA won't elaborate. Try watching it with stop motion, it paints a different picture.
 
Downes turns into him and swings his arm. His elbow catches him full in the face. THB does make contact first but the player isn't on his way down otherwise Downes would have missed him. So that's irrelevant. It's one of those where I don't think it was intended by Downes and maybe an element of misfortune to it but it has to be a red because he's used excessive force. I'd consider it more serious foul play than violent conduct as he is making a challenge for the ball but it's a 3 game ban regardless.

On this occasion, Tom’s description is exactly how I see it in that video too.


I’d expect a red card there in a VAR match
 
I think it was deliberate tbh, he's certainly got form for it. Did a very similar thing at Forest last season.
Think? I heard earlier today that Flynn and Cullen were good friends off the pitch, why would he deliberately try to harm him?
 
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Nah bollocks to that as a retrospective red. How often are retrospective bans given? Bet there’s loads of incidents similar every season that could be looked at and taken the same way as this that never are. And yet this is, and now!?

This looks way worse than it is when you slow it down and look at movements in isolation. Flynn has his eyes on the ball. The arm would have made contact with the players chest if his knees didn’t buckle from the THB challenge as Flynn made contact. The elbow to the face would have looked and was intended like a pushing away at chest height to get his body in between him and the ball if the Swansea player wasn't so low down and buckling towards Flynn at the moment of contact. It’s just an unfortunate series of events imo.

If given as a red in real time, without the ref being able to watch it back I’d call it unfortunate but could understand it far more than being given retrospectively. I’d also take it being a yellow in real time and then a yellow for the stupid afters that he did get a yellow for, resulting in a red. But this retrospective red is bollocks imo. Meanwhile Hackney can literally and very deliberately lash out and hack a player and because a **** ref saw it and somehow only gave a yellow it can’t be retrospectively looked at? Just **** that rule off because it’s just ****ing stupid. That’s a way more obvious red than this by Flynn. The Gabriel headbut too. But again, stupid rule and incompetent referee (and VAR use on that occasion) saves him. The inconsistency and the fact that they always seem to decide to flex their power on smaller clubs is galling. Especially just before a huge few games for us which he’ll now miss. How very convenient.
 
Think? I heard earlier today that Flynn and Cullen were good friends off the pitch, why would he delibrately try to harm him?
Yes, think. Obviously none of us can know for a certain either way.

Downes always plays right on the edge and it's not unusual to let it get the better of him when he's frustrated.
 
He had to held back by Manning for quite a while as well. He had lost his head completely.

Yeah which happens fairly regularly. Wasn't there a home game recently where he got lucky not to see red and lost his head?

Norwich maybe?
 
Yes, think. Obviously none of us can know for a certain either way.

Downes always plays right on the edge and it's not unusual to let it get the better of him when he's frustrated.
It's what makes him tick, he needs to learn from Romeu the art of not getting a red card.
 
It's what makes him tick, he needs to learn from Romeu the art of not getting a red card.
Definitely what makes him tick and he wouldn't be the same player without it. Probably needs to control it better sometimes but it's a fine line between that and losing it.

He's done well to not get more reds in his career than he has really.
 
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Definitely what makes him tick and he wouldn't be the same player without it. Probably needs to control it better sometimes but it's a fine line between that and losing it.

He's done well to not get more reds in his career than he has really.
True and there have been a few occasions when he wasn't guilty, his reputation not helping.
 
Nah bollocks to that as a retrospective red. How often are retrospective bans given? Bet there’s loads of incidents similar every season that could be looked at and taken the same way as this that never are. And yet this is, and now!?

This looks way worse than it is when you slow it down and look at movements in isolation. Flynn has his eyes on the ball. The arm would have made contact with the players chest if his knees didn’t buckle from the THB challenge as Flynn made contact. The elbow to the face would have looked and was intended like a pushing away at chest height to get his body in between him and the ball if the Swansea player wasn't so low down and buckling towards Flynn at the moment of contact. It’s just an unfortunate series of events imo.

If given as a red in real time, without the ref being able to watch it back I’d call it unfortunate but could understand it far more than being given retrospectively. I’d also take it being a yellow in real time and then a yellow for the stupid afters that he did get a yellow for, resulting in a red. But this retrospective red is bollocks imo. Meanwhile Hackney can literally and very deliberately lash out and hack a player and because a **** ref saw it and somehow only gave a yellow it can’t be retrospectively looked at? Just **** that rule off because it’s just ****ing stupid. That’s a way more obvious red than this by Flynn. The Gabriel headbut too. But again, stupid rule and incompetent referee (and VAR use on that occasion) saves him. The inconsistency and the fact that they always seem to decide to flex their power on smaller clubs is galling. Especially just before a huge few games for us which he’ll now miss. How very convenient.
This ^^^
 
Sutton's prediction: 3 - 0
v
Tottenham fan Alfie Watts, co-host of the Race Across the World: The Detour visual podcast.
Alfie's prediction:
3 - 0
Southampton have been so good, that City can't take this for granted. I thought Saints were heading for League One under Will Still but Eckert took over in December and has turned things around so much that it looks like they are going up instead.
I am pretty sure City will still win the game, because they never really miss a beat when they are at Wembley, but Southampton will not just roll over. 3

AI's prediction: 3 - 0