EPL Talk

Arsene Wenger’s Wise Words on the Fiasco in Paris

Eric Altshule — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:42:13 +0000

The appetite for commentary on the farce in Paris still seems strong, and I thought Arsene Wenger had a very wise take on the entire situation today. Wenger is, obviously, a French supporter and very close with Henry. In fairness to the Irish fans, the world football community, and for the sake of Henry, he called for the game to be replayed.

For Wenger, labeling Henry a cheat is too far. Cheating implies a degree of conscientious decision-making, and in a play that takes a fraction of a second and in the height of an emotional encounter, “cheat” is too harsh a word. As Wenger said, “For me people who bought referees, who took drugs, they are the real cheats in sport.” That is a healthy bit of perspective.

Moreover, the people who really let the football world down are the people who refuse to allow modern technology to correct errors. Wenger said that he is sure that that as the referee moved back to the circle for the kick-off, he knew there was something very wrong with that goal. But what could he do about it? He did not see the handball, and he can’t change a call because Shay Given was outraged, whether Given was right or not. FIFA left the referee alone to take the blame, and was not there to help him when he needed it the most.

Finally, this is what Wenger said about the impossible position Henry is now in: “A player of his stature has a massive pressure on his shoulders and if somebody has to do something for Thierry, it is French football and France as a country, not to leave him out there alone against the whole world. France has to say ‘yes it was a handball and we offer a replay’.”

You cannot be more fair than that.

The Hand Of Henry: An Irish Perspective

Rory Tevlin — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:48:31 +0000

I thought I should jump in on this issue while the water is still warm and explain an Irish view of Wednesday’s larceny. In Ireland we do not do football dramas in small measures, Roy Keane’s walkout at the 2002 World Cup practically sparked a civil war and now the ‘Hand of Henry’ has turned into a diplomatic incident.

Politicians, comedians, sportspeople and raconteurs have all joined the debate on the goal that sent France to the World Cup and there is alot of anger in Ireland about it. All people are talking about in the papers, on the TV and on the radio is this game and ‘that’ goal.

Thierry Henry is now the ultimate pantomime villain, a Facebook group where we Paddys can get together and mutually loath him attracted 60,000 members within 18 hours! The flag at the top of the page is just one of the photos on the page and, if anything, the site shows the creative possibilities of Photoshop.

Various citizens of our fair republic have sworn never to use Loreal, drive a Citroen or French kiss anymore. Internet campaigns have been launched and many people I know have sent strongly worded letters to the powers that be in FIFA, yes folks, noone does righteous outage quite like the Irish.

As an Arsenal fan I am stuck in the middle of this hate fest and I do not think Henry deserves all the bile that has been thrown his way. If my sporting integrity was tested and Ireland won through a goal like that would I be morally outraged? I am sure I would find some time to reflect as I looked for cheap flights to South Africa.

I do think though the timing of his comments today where he said Ireland deserve a replay seems very convenient. It is very easy to come out with that kind of thing after both the French Federation and FIFA said a replay is not going to happen.

To have your guts ripped out by an idol, for the second time I might add, is a tough one to handle but some of the abuse coming his way is over the top. People are saying his reputation and legacy is forever ‘tarnished’, he certainly will not be popular in Ireland but one incident should not cloud Henry’s entire career. Are Roy Keane, Patrick Vieira or Eric Cantona less revered because of some of the nasty things they did in their career? Not really and Henry should not be judged on this incident alone.

Amid the madness of this quite alot of what is important has been lost in the ether. Firstly, I would like to point out how fantastically well Ireland played. We dominated the French in their home stadium and the reality is Ireland should have wrapped the game up in normal time with both Robbie Keane and Damian Duff spurning quality chances. That was one of the best Irish displays I have seen and I was hugely proud of the guts and desire we showed. Keith Andrews showed that mug Lassana Diarra that pride and passion can still get a player a long way and Ireland certainly looked like they wanted the game more than France.

This was a huge moment for this team and for the likes of Keane, Duff, Dunne and possibly Given Wednesday was the end of a dream. They will probably never get another chance to get to a World Cup and to lose to a goal like that was really sickening. Duff and Dunne handled themselves with good grace in this whole affair, Dunne claimed he did not blame Henry for what happened and Duff said he probably would have done the same. At least he’s honest and as Irish fans get completely bent out of shape about Henry’s moment of infamy we should recall that Damian Duff is one of the finest exponents of ’winning’ free kicks.

I don’t think there was ever any chance of a replay going ahead, let’s be honest about it FIFA got the result they wanted, the big boys are through. If this incident forces a rethink on the use of technology in football though I will rest a little easier. This is something that pisses me of beyond belief, I wrote here a few months ago after Howard Webb made an error in the Confederations Cup that technology should be considered and it is something I feel strongly about. Wednesday’s game hs once again brought the issue forward and it seems to pop up every all the timewith not much done about it in the mean time.

Will FIFA ever pull their heads out of the sand? Wednesday’s game had millions and millions riding on it, not just for the immediate boost to the winning football association but the buzz of the World Cup would create massive revenue. I remember the 2002 World Cup and when the Irish football team are successful it creates such a feelgood factor around the country. To have to stomach a decision like that because FIFA think football should remain a ‘human’ game is really alot to take.

We Irish are hopping mad now but they say time heals all scars. I don’t blame Henry, I don’t particularly blame the referee (although the linesman has a bit to answer for) but I do blame the muppets that govern football for letting a situation like this happen by their pig headed refusal to countenance the use of technology. Even their far from ideal extra officials would have saved Ireland on Wednesday but they always seem to be behind the times.

For a brief moment our small country on the fringe of Europe is at the centre of the football world. Come the World Cup in South Africa this tie will have been forgotten and we will have to watch the lucky 32 countries battle it out. It would have been glorious but such is life.

Henry’s Story Continues to “Evolve” Thanks to Public Opinion

Kartik Krishnaiyer — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:20:06 +0000

Since Thierry Henry’s handball on Wednesday, the former Arsenal striker’s reaction has gone from arrogance, to indifference to being contrite. From where I sit, this simply proves that Henry is a Public Relations driven phony. He’s cultivated an image for over a decade in conjunction with his handlers and now sees the possibility it can all come undone.

While several of my followers on Twitter yesterday felt I was crazy to even discuss the idea of a boycott of those companies that use Henry as a spokesman (Gillette, Pepsi and Reebok among others), I maintain that thought was in order given the extreme consequences of Henry’s action, and his subsequent story. The above listed corporations cannot afford to be associated with someone so unwilling to show contrition for an obvious mistake, be it intentional or inadvertent.

This story now seems to be evolving, presumably as his handlers gauge the public reaction, particularly in the British Isles.

At first, Henry said he handled the ball but it was not intentional, and had not curtailed his celebrations after William Gallas’ goal and after the victory

Then, Henry changed his story to claim that he had told Ireland Defender Richard Dunne after the match that he had handled the ball and he did not celebrate with his team mates.

Then, Henry claimed he had told the official it was a handball, but the official told him that he was the referee and the decision was final.

Now, Henry says a replay is in order.

This evolution of positions has taken place in rapid succession, over 36 hours as many British writers have continued to pour scorn on Henry’s actions.

Regardless of what Henry’s handlers do and how his image suffers the ultimate outcome is what will not change thanks to FIFA’s decision to rule out a replay, even though a precedent, albeit not this close to the draw does exist.

The Republic of Ireland, whose fighting spirit and incredible traveling fans would have livened up the World Cup have been eliminated in favor of a group of players who interest appears to be more centered on club football. And who can blame them? World Class players making lots of money from their clubs whose nation is only partly interested in their football exploits leads to a strong club over country attitude.

The World Cup has lost a tactical genius in Giovanni Trapattoni, in favor of a manager in Raymond Dommench, whose main guide is astrology and superstition. We have not seen Henry’s former Arsenal team mate Robert Pires in France colors for five years, because after all he is a Scorpio and Dommench does not trust Scorpio’s.

The scenes of French ticket holders gladly selling their tickets to Irish fans for a few Euros before kickoff in Paris should reinforce the reasons why I wrote this piece earlier this week, before the match. Ireland has been deprived a World Cup trip by Thierry Henry’s handball, while much of France may not even be in the slightest bit interested that their nation actually qualified for the World Cup.

That’s then ultimate legacy of this shameful two leg tie. World Football was the loser. Henry handball, or no handball, the wrong side advanced to South Africa.

Liverpool Legend Jan Molby Coming To New York City

The Gaffer — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:45:18 +0000

Jan Molby is a player that I have a lot of time for. The Danish footballer was a maestro in midfield. While he’s best remembered as being a pivotal player for Liverpool during his time there between 1984 and 1996, he has a special place in my heart for being a pioneer with the club I support, Swansea City, where he introduced a beautiful style of play as player manager which laid the groundwork for Roberto Martinez’s arrival, much later, in 2007.

Judging by Molby’s artistry on the pitch with Liverpool and Swansea, it’s no surprise then that Molby’s early part of his career included two years playing with Ajax where he won the Dutch Championship in 1983 and played in the Ajax youth academy alongside Marco van Basten, Frank Rijkaard and Jesper Olsen. For those of you who had a chance to watch him play, either in person or on television, there was something magical about the way he played and how adept he was at passing the ball. To see just one example of his skill, watch the video above.

Fortunately for us, Molby will be visiting the United States next month where he’ll be making an appearance in New York City on December 19, 2009 at the 11th Street Bar. Molby will be available to sign autographs and memorabilia, as well as to pose for photographs. If you’re interested in attending or want to learn more details, visit the Liverpool FC New York Supporters Club website. Tickets to the Jan Molby appearance are $20 and tickets are limited, so sign up today if you want to meet the legend.

EPL Talk Podcast: Henry Aftermath from a French Perspective

Kartik Krishnaiyer — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 04:57:28 +0000

On this episode of the EPL Talk Podcast, host Kartik Krishnaiyer and French Football expert Dave Trotter discuss one of the most controversial football stories of the year — the Thierry Henry handball incident for France against Ireland which ended up knocking the Republic Of Ireland out of the World Cup qualifying match while France will be making their way to South Africa next summer.

Be sure not to miss a single episode of the EPL Talk Podcast, the only Premier League interview show on the Internet. We have a long list of high-profile guests scheduled over the next weeks each with their own fascinating stories to tell. Subscribe to the EPL Talk Podcast via iTunes or visit EPL Talk or the archives for the latest episodes.