Veering off topic here, but I saw this and it just summed things up for me. It confirms that, in my mind, Peter Herbert is talking out of turn when he says Jewish football fans are offended by the chant. He isn't a football person, and with all due respect should probably take the context into more consideration than he has. I have to be honest and say I'd heard the Y-word in a Spurs fan context long before I knew it could be used as a racial slur against Jews, or was even connected to Judaism. Things like this need to be looked at with a better understanding, something Herbert (at this point in time) doesn't have.
Well, I'll respectfully differ with the last couple of posts. Some Jews do find it offensive (although clearly others don't). David Baddiel is, let's not forget, himself Jewish, so his view is valid. He's a proper football fan too, so he gets the culture of the game. I'm not happy to dismiss the discomfort that some people experience just because not everyone feels the same. One of the measures of whether something is offensive is if people find it offensive, and some people plainly do.
Neither am I, I was just making the point that it isn't as cut and dry as it's being made out to be. The issue I have is people like Peter Herbert coming galloping in on their high horse, all piss and vinegar, saying what's black and what's white. It needs a bit more thought than that. Is Baddiel a Spurs fan?
The only thing Clattenburg's guilty of is being a bad ref. If he is leading a new generation then the league is buggered.
I cannot believe that Mark Clattenburg did anything wrong in respect of the allegations. In an environment when the behaviour of so many players is so bad. As to him being a bad referee - Yes, he has some poor performances, as does everyone. Frankly, the rubbish that Referees have to deal with is a nonsense: blatant cheating; lack of respect by players and managers (always the ref's fault; never that their prima donnas can't hit a barn door); lack of effective leadership by FIFA/UEFA (and The FA as a result); and all the other consequences of money at the top of football.
One thing I know about the refs is that the better refs get the big games. They're rated every week by their peers and the league and that's how they get their assignments, so Clattenburg must have done something right to get the Chelsea v ManU game. Be that as it may, I still can't believe the charges.
Well the FA didn't believe Chelsea and/or their players. Mark Clattenburg has been cleared. It appears that Mikel will be charged with 'abusive' comments after the match but I doubt if that will come to anything. It's the Club who should be facing a charge. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/20420934 I find it strange that the other officials claim not to have heard Clattengurg's remarks even though they we mic'd up. Does this mean that all the (supposed) dialogue during matches between the ref and assistants is a sham?
No, it probably means they didn't hear Clattenburg say anything racist. I expect Mr Herbert will be having a few words in the morning.
That's my understanding. They other officials said that never heard Clattenburg say anything as such. Chelsea need to be punished as much as Mikel. Especially coming from a club who actually sanctions racists (i.e. Terry).
I actually feel a bit sorry for Chelsea over this. It sounds like a genuine misunderstanding, attributable to a player for whom English isn't his first language thinking he heard something that was never actually said. Chelsea decided that, post-Terrygate, they couldn't be seen to be turning a blind eye, hence they made the bad decision to go public straightaway. It was the wrong decision, but I can understand why the club made it.
Okay. I understand from today's papers that all conversations will in future be recorded. Why don't they broadcast them live ? It works in rugby.
Language Timothy! Rugby players tend to call the referee Sir. Footballers tend to call him a ****er, a twat or a ****ing arsehole.
There's definately some weird crap going on at Stamford Bridge. First this Clattenburg fiasco, then the firing of Di Matteo and the hiring of another interum manager in Rafa while the oligarch pines for Guardiola. Chaos of the highest order. This is a case of the owner overstepping his management and treating the club like a toy, tinkering like a child with things he ought not touch. Thank God for Chairman Mo.
If we had taken up the offer, way back in 1896, to buy Stamford Bridge there wouldn't even be a Chelsea. Just a thought !
