This season has been characterised by three recurring features:
1. Injuries to key players
2. Shocking refereeing decisions and in particular a refusal to award us legitimate penalties
3. Shite corner-kick delivery from Steven Gerrard
All three were in evidence tonight at the Emirates.
Shorn of Torres, Johnson, Benayoun and even Aquilaini, a battling performance had given us a great chance of coming away with at least a point. Then Carra limped off and the game swung Arsenal’s way just long enough for them to nick a winner as Carra’s replacement – the completely ineffective Degen – stood and watched his man score.
Despite that, we battled back and created some clear goal-scoring chances but the players on the ends of them ultimately just lacked the quality of the attackers we were missing.
Finally, with virtually the last kick of the game, Steven Gerrard whipped a ball towards the goal that Cesc Fabregas reached out and punched out of his own penalty area. Surely a penalty and a sending off (particularly given the Spaniard had been booked seconds earlier)?
No fucking chance with Howard Webb around. The man who failed to give us a blatant penalty against the same opposition when Gallas brought down Gerrard in the area at Anfield this season was at his farcical best (or worst).
Had Carra not had to go off, we would never have been beaten. Had Howard Webb not failed to give us a clear penalty, we might have avoided defeat despite Carra’s injury. Had Torres or Benayoun been fit, perhaps we might have taken one or two of the chances we created and, of course, perhaps we might have created more. Had Steven Gerrard not insisted on taking all the corner-kicks and taking them so badly that yet another one went out of play before even reaching the penalty area(!) then perhaps we would have created a goal-scoring chance direct from a corner-kick.
It’s all ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ but that doesn’t mean it is invalid. We have been cheated by referees again and again this season and it has been an absolute joke. Never in all the seasons I have followed has there been a campaign where so many blatant decisions have gone against us. It’s bad enough being handicapped by dickhead owners with no money to spend and with a media and an element of the fan-base who place unrealistic expectations on us, slate our players and call for our manager’s head after every bad result, but to have fortune and referees gang up on us in the way they have this season as well has simply made this campaign impossible.
If we can secure fourth place this season, it would arguably be Rafa’s greatest achievement in the Premiership. As for the old maxim that these things even themselves out over the course of a season... Bull-shit!
P.S. I said in my last post that Degen wasn't useless. I take that back.
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