I actually came on here to see if anyone else thought as I did about Leroy’s petulance and over the top challenge and am heartened to find other blues think it was a stupid and reckless action. Having sustained serious injury from a tackle similar to the one he put in (calculated and targeted), I will never be a fan of that sort of play regardless of the level of physicality we suppose ought to be allowed in the top leagues. For me, that sort of action is always beyond the laws and spirit of the game, no matter if you are a City player.
Perhaps it would help settle things down, though, if we all agree it was an “orange” card: one of those challenges that may not be an outright red but, upon closer inspection, was not just a yellow either. It is a challenge that precariously straddles the line between common booking and sending off. I have always advocated for a sin bin (10 minute benching, team playing a man down) for challenges like that, as an intermediate punishment between yellow and red for this and other reasons.
I will also say this, even though it will likely not be popular: I really like Leroy, and want him to become one of the best players in the world at City, but this is not the first time his acted out in this way and I think eventually he *should* receive a red and violent conduct ban, for no other reason then to demonstrate directly that there are consequences to him and the team for this behaviour. That is sometimes the only way a younger person will learn (telling them often has no real impact on their decision-making).
I know for certain Pep and the management team will not have been happy seeing Leroy act in that way and will undoubtedly have a word. Our club prides itself in not only being the best but maintaining a reputation for stylish, professional, “good” play, and those sort of actions, if repeated consistently, will tarnish that image (and make us look petulant by association). I think of the aftermath of Aguero’s and Dinho’s clashes with David Luiz, however justified we may think they were. The club most definitely dealt with it internally and ensured the players knew that those sort of negative actions—and the widespread subsequent coverage of them—would not be tolerated.
