The on topic thread

[moomba]

Bit of a PR nightmare for the FA.

They won't want the outcome of a racism accusation to be that the accuser is the only one punished.

Suspect he'll get a warning on the tweets (he was 14 at the time) and a pass on the push.

 

[Magma]

but if the ref saw the push and gave nothing how would he be punished?

 

[Zidane98]

but if the ref saw the push and gave nothing how would he be punished?

You can still be done under the new rules I believe unless a yellow card was issued for the incident.

 

[Zidane98]

Bit of a PR nightmare for the FA.

They won't want the outcome of a racism accusation to be that the accuser is the only one punished.

Suspect he'll get a warning on the tweets (he was 14 at the time) and a pass on the push.

The racism allegations should have zero effect on how the 2 other issues are handled.

 

[moomba]

Passed away today. I love this clip

 

[Latro]

 

[Bojan KantKick]

 

[Bojan KantKick]

 

[Bojan KantKick]

 

[moomba]

And in the long run, supporters (in this case Seville) carry the can once again.

 

[Bojan KantKick]

Up to them to apply pressure on their club to stop being w***ers.

 

[Bojan KantKick]

And in the long run, supporters (in this case Seville) carry the can once again.

Seville now subsidising their fans away tickets lol

 

[Jatz]

Why couldn't Man U just help subsidise the away prices without hitting the Seville fans for more money? How much are they really going to lose out of that...

 

[ADL9798]

Why couldn't Man U just help subsidise the away prices without hitting the Seville fans for more money? How much are they really going to lose out of that...

It's the principle. If every club in Europe does this every time United visit (just because it's a high profile club with more supporters than any club on the planet), it'll cost United fans an absolute fortune over the course of a season. This sets a marker to any clubs considering jacking up the price when United roll into town. As noted in that letter, why should Liverpool fans pay £54 to watch their team play at Sevilla's home ground and United fans pay £89? I think it's a fair stance by United, up to Sevilla to do the same and reimburse their traveling fans, or stop price gouging United supporters.

 

[elhadjihenry]

Didn't remember that incident. Were the players out of play already when it happened?

On the touch line, Debuchy shielding the ball out and Arnautovic with no chance to get it shoves Debuchy over the line causing the injury. He missed 3 months.

 

[moomba]

UEFA should cap prices.

No-one should have to pay £90 for the "privilege" of watching their team play a game of football.

Teams reaching this round get €6m bonus, there's another €6.5m for the teams that reach the next stage.

No reason why the fans need to be fleeced.

 

[elhadjihenry]

Not sure how I feel about the Man U/Sevilla ticket situation. First instinct is to ask why United couldn't subsidise their own fans tickets, however that doesn't have any impact on the core issue of away fans being overcharged and lets Sevilla "get away with it".

Ready needs UEFA to step in and put a cap on away ticket prices the same way the FA has.

 

[moomba]

Not just away tickets.home tickets need to be capped too, in Europe and domestically.

I tried to get tickets to Watford for my kids the other week. £29 each, both under 10's. I think it was £58 adult price. Clubs just taking the piss ATM.

 

[elhadjihenry]

Not just away tickets.home tickets need to be capped too, in Europe and domestically.

I tried to get tickets to Watford for my kids the other week. £29 each, both under 10's. I think it was £58 adult price. Clubs just taking the piss ATM.

Yep that's a ridiculous price, and against a mid table team at that.

Maybe they could enable clubs to have a few "marquee" home fixtures which demand a higher ticket price, but have a cap for all other games.

 

[ADL9798]

Bit of a PR nightmare for the FA.

They won't want the outcome of a racism accusation to be that the accuser is the only one punished.

Suspect he'll get a warning on the tweets (he was 14 at the time) and a pass on the push.

I don't follow.. Surely only if the racism accusation is proven to be true would it be reasonable (or good for PR) for anyone else to be punished in this scenario?

In any case, they're completely separate incidents and shouldn't be conflated. If the accusation is proven to be true then Firmino deserves whatever he gets. If it was a false accusation then a public explanation and apology should be offered to Firmino.

In either scenario the accusation of racism is irrelevant to anything else Holgate may or may not have done. Accusing someone of racism shouldn't be a ticket to receive a more lenient response to for example, deliberately shoving a player into the advertising boards with the intent to cause injury, or posting homophobic tweets (although given his age at the time I'd expect a slap on the wrist and some sort of community service will be as far as that goes). Neither of those charges should have anything to do with Firmino.

I understand it's important not to deter players from reporting racism in future, but we also don't want to provide an incentive for players to use the race card as a tactic to get out of trouble (not saying that's the case here, but it's a possibility).

We want to see racist behaviour punished but equally, as with sexual harassment, if you make an accusation like that you'd want to be bloody well sure that it's accurate given the significant damage such an accusation (even one without any supporting evidence) can cause to someone's reputation and potentially their career. Personally I think that's fair.

 

[jd2010]

Good on United sticking up for their own fans.

In this case Sevilla started it and United decided that if that's how they want to be the Sevilla fans shall be the ones to lose out.

 

[Bojan KantKick]

 

[moomba]

I understand it's important not to deter players from reporting racism in future, but we also don't want to provide an incentive for players to use the race card as a tactic to get out of trouble (not saying that's the case here, but it's a possibility)..

This is the problem for the FA as far as I can see. Presuming Holgate is genuine in his belief that he was racially abused, the upshot is that he has had his past dug into by opposition supporters. And now might face punishment himself. It's an absolute deterrent to reporting racism.

If he's punished, especially if Firmino isn't, it's a really bad message to send out.

Yes, it should be treated on it's own merits, personally I think it's a bit shitty that it's come to light at all. But the FA are PR driven, and I think that will have a big impact on their decision.

 

[Established1870]

This is the problem for the FA as far as I can see. Presuming Holgate is genuine in his belief that he was racially abused, the upshot is that he has had his past dug into by opposition supporters. And now might face punishment himself. It's an absolute deterrent to reporting racism.

If he's punished, especially if Firmino isn't, it's a really bad message to send out.

Yes, it should be treated on it's own merits, personally I think it's a bit shitty that it's come to light at all. But the FA are PR driven, and I think that will have a big impact on their decision.

Roberto Firmino is a grown man (or woman) being accused of racist remarks.

Mason Holgate made homophobic comments at 14 years old.

Surely that gets taken into consideration.

 

[Zidane98]

This is the problem for the FA as far as I can see. Presuming Holgate is genuine in his belief that he was racially abused, the upshot is that he has had his past dug into by opposition supporters. And now might face punishment himself. It's an absolute deterrent to reporting racism.

If he's punished, especially if Firmino isn't, it's a really bad message to send out.

Yes, it should be treated on it's own merits, personally I think it's a bit shitty that it's come to light at all. But the FA are PR driven, and I think that will have a big impact on their decision.

I can't agree with not punishing Holgare just because he has lodged an allegation of racial abuse. That just gives the green light to those who wish to use allegations of racial abuse as a means of escaping punishment.

I would hope the FA looks at the offensive tweets in a totally independent matter and the possibility of a ban for violent conduct as totally independent to what is happening with the racial abuse investigation. The decision to whether Holgare is banned should also be totally irrelevant in regards to the Firmino situation.

I personally don't think he should face sanction for posting some dumb shit he said as a 16 year old.

I do think there us grounds for a 3 match ban for deliberately trying to injure an opponent after the ball is out of play.