Unpunished incident on Manchester City defender leaves Gael Clichy furious, RICHARD WILLIAMSreports
VINCENT KOMPANY watched last night’s match from the grandstand, serving the first part of his four-match suspension, but he had made an impact earlier in the day with a thoughtful statement on the subject of his red card against Manchester United on Sunday.
Naturally he expressed his disagreement with Chris Foy’s decision, and with the FA’s rejection of Manchester City’s appeal, but he did so in such measured and sensible terms that even those who dispute his conclusions could respect his opinion. The influence of the incident in the 12th minute of Sunday’s FA Cup defeat was evident in the opening stages of last night’s League Cup semi-final, when Andy Carroll flew into an attempted tackle on Gael Clichy near the touchline, seemingly with both feet off the ground. Clichy was deft enough to turn both himself and the ball away from the Liverpool number nine without making contact, and while play continued the Frenchman turned to the assistant referee and accompanied his gesticulations with words that could easily be imagined.
If the game is serious about eliminating reckless challenges, then players are going to be justified in demanding a greater degree of consistency from officials. That is what they got when the tackle from behind was outlawed, and the two-footed flying tackle from any angle would appear to be the next target.
One can only hope that Kompany is wrong when he suggests that to eliminate what are traditionally thought of as full-blooded tackles would rob the English game of the combination, in Kompany’s words, of “hardness” and “fairness” on which it prides itself.
The speed and power of the players and the sheer velocity of the game demand modifications, as Kompany seemed to acknowledge. “If football fans decide I’m wrong in raising these concerns,” he concluded, “then I will have no problem in accepting the fact that times are changing again for our game,” his words showing a mature appreciation of the nature of a debate in which football fans seem evenly split.
The City captain’s judgment was badly missed on the pitch last night as Liverpool bore forward and the home defence found itself under siege and unable to clear its lines. Joe Hart was forced to make two outstanding saves, first from Steven Gerrard’s curling shot and then from a Stewart Downing drive deflected by Daniel Agger’s instinctive backheel. Stefan Savic, Kompany’s replacement at centre-back, had looked uneasy from the start and the Montenegro international, who turned 22 on Sunday, gave the visitors a present when he raised his foot in a challenge in the 12th minute and caught Agger on the knee. There could be no disputing the award of the penalty-kick, unceremoniously dispatched by Gerrard. In a beleagured City back line, Micah Richards was making his presence felt. Given the captaincy, the 23-year-old showed a readiness to lead by example in defence and attack, covering for Savic and driving up the touchline whenever the opportunity presented itself. In the closing moments of the first half he powered past Glen Johnson, cutting in towards the area before producing a fine cutback, only for James Milner to sidefoot a clear chance over the bar from 15 yards.
In the confrontation between the rivals for a single England place, Johnson had the excuse of being redeployed on to his weaker flank in order to allow Kenny Dalglish to rest Jose Enrique, with the promising Martin Kelly brought in at right-back.
Goodness knows how much English football Fabio Capello has watched since he was last sighted before Christmas, but it is hard to know what more Richards has to do than be awarded not just a regular starting place but an important role in the side that is currently leading the league.
How much damage Kompany’s absence, combined with that of Kolo Toure, away at the Africa Cup of Nations, will do to City’s title chances, and the rest of their season, is hard to predict. It may be that they will struggle away to Wigan Athletic and at home to Tottenham Hotspur in the league, and at Anfield in the second leg against Liverpool, before their captain returns. However, on last night’s evidence, as on last Sunday’s, they miss the binding strength of Yaya Toure’s influence even more.
GuardianService
