Manchester City News 24/7Writer: fifthcolumnblue 
Date:Thursday January 12 2012
Time: 7:45AM
UK time is: 04:29:08
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Video: The Glen Johnson Tackle On Lescott
My challenge to the Football Association. If the governing body of English football want to be taken seriously by any player, manager or supporter in this country, then they must immediately ban Glen Johnson for three matches following his dangerous, two-footed challenge on Manchester City defender Joleon Lescott in the Carling Cup semi final at the Etihad Stadium.
The challenge by Johnson comes only days after Vincent Kompany was subjected to similar punishment for a similar challenge on Luis Nanny in the FA Cup against Manchester United. Kompany is serving a 4 match ban, as his tackle was deemed to have endangered an opponent, despite the fact that Kompany appeared in control of his actions and won the ball cleanly without actually touching the opposition player. Glen Johnson's challenge was far worse, as he lunged, studs up into the challenge and caught both the player and the ball.
Now in an ideal world I would not be calling for Johnson to be penalised in such a fashion. Common sense would suggest that his foul on Lescott was a yellow card offence at best. However, the fact remains that Johnson's foul was at least a degree of magnitude worse than the incident involving Vincent Kompany. Incidentally, I also believe that common sense, if applied to Vincent Kompany's challenge would have seen him punished by nothing more than a booking.
Sorry to all Liverpool fans who don't think a red card and three match ban for their player is fair - and I agree with you - it's not fair. Banning Vincent Kompany for a similar but less severe challenge is equally unfair, and would seem to fly in the face of common sense. Unfortunately for the Football Association, a precedent has been set, and the type of challenge we witnessed this evening has now clearly been outlawed by the game's authorities.
So in order to avoid any ambiguity, accusations of bias or sense of injustice amongst Manchester City supporters, I am calling for the FA to be consistent in its handling of disciplinary matters and retrospectively ban Glen Johnson. Once again, apologies to all Liverpool fans, but unfortunately I don't make the rules - the FA do, and they simple must adhere to them - anything else would be cowardly and to the detriment of the game.
Shall I hold my breath?
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Your Comments
Match ref Lee Mason ignored this one didn't he. Barsteward!!
Tudor
What good would it do for Johnson to be banned? None whatsoever. Mancini, as he was entitled to do, highlighted the hypocrisy within the FA and the Referee's Association. Leave it at that I say. Hopefully the two associations have a long hard look at themselves and see how they can adress this, maybe by being transparent in the appeal process ie put in writing the findings of the appeal and maybe the Refs Assoc. will think twice before blindingly backing their man again. One last thing, this challenge was indeed more dangerous than Kompany's but did you see any City players screaming in the ref's face, no because they have a bit more class than that, are you reading Stretford?
Bluedub
If anyone needed convincing of the old guard protectionism of the erstwhile Big Four, then this tackle is it. Not one shred of Kompany style tackle analysis in The Street of Shame this morning. Rather an attempted portrayal of Mancini as a nutcase and Gerrard the upstanding no nonsense English footballer. Dalglish of course "didn't see it." Rival fans can say what they want but I'd challenge them not to have gone ape***** had events that have hit City this week struck their club.
Johnny Baguette
Or simply recind the red card for vinnie and call it a draw.
Buzz Lightyear
I think we should have put vinnies up to compare the two and then had a poll.
Buzz Lightyear
Like I said, I don't think Glen Johnson deserves a ban for that tackle - a yellow card challenge at worst, and we move on. Unfortunately, the FA made their bed over Vinnie, now it's time to lie in it. They'll probably hide behind the old "The ref dealt with it at the time, we can't do anything else" waffle that serves them so well when they want to duck the issue, but can I also point out that there were actually TWO of these challenges from Liverpool players that went unpunished? Andy Carrol slid in two footed on Gael Clichy as well, causing the City left back to leap out of the way and into the advertising hoardings - a tackle as bad as Johnson's, and we got rewarded with.... a throw in. If the FA don't want to look like total hypocrites, they can at least do something about Caroll's tackle based on video evidence, surely? As with the Johnson challenge, I really do not think Carrol deserves a retrospective red card and subsequent 3 match ban, but hey, it's the letter of the law according to the inconsistent buffoons at the FA, so I want it applied in both cases. Don't blame me for demanding the rules are enforced, the law is a ass.
fifthcolumnblue
Bitter?
RealDanger
ha ha. I'm only kidding. Disgrace really. These things happen though. What really gets my goat is Kenny Dalgleish. The guy is an absolute kock. Such a bell when it comes to public relations. My admiration for Mancini is growing as well. good fella. Good manager. We all want to see city trip up, it's natural, but he seems to have a touch of class (most of the time)
RealDanger
Not bitter at all - just trying to point out the extreme stupidity and inconsistency in the laws ad the interpretation of the laws of the game. Neither Carrol nor Johnson deserved a sending off or ban for those tackles, but if we're forced to do without our captain for 4 matches for what was a much less dangerous challenge, then the FA can either bleeding well admit it made a mistake and reduce Vinnie's ban to 1` game (served last night) or it can ban Johnson and Carrol for three matches each. Not fair, not sensible, but City were told in no uncertain terms that that type of challenge is serious foul play, let the squirming muppets at the FA apply the law equally. They won't of course, because banning Johnson and/or Carrol would make them look incredibly stupid, and they might actually have to have a rethink on the rules surrounding how referees interpret such challenges. Either way, the FA come out of this looking like incredible hypocrites and it is immediately obvious to me that they are simply not fit to gevern the game any more (if they ever were), as they really just seem to make things up as they go along, and unfortunately, we're the ones getting shafted by their inconsistency.
fifthcolumnblue
fifthcolumnblue, you and fans of about 14 other teams think youre being shafted. Everton are still moaning about Rodwells red card, even though it was rescinded. Against Newcastle at Anfield, Cabaye made an absolutely disgusting leg-breaking challenge on Spearing. Spearing really was lucky not to have his leg broken in two. Cabaye wasnt even booked. Refs make bad calls in every single game. Kompanys tackle wasnt a red card, most people agreed on that and your manager was very vocal about it not being a red. However, the FA was never going to rescind it as Fergie had stuck his oar in after the game to ensure it wouldnt be rescinded. That however, does not make Johnsons tackle a red card. It was a yellow card yes, but not a red. So to call on the FA to act and ban him for 3 games is plain childish. Just because a decision went against you in one game doesnt mean you can start whinging and crying to get it evened up with bad decisions for you in other games. Also, whinging about preference to the old top four from refs? Jesus, I've always liked Citys fans and respected your support of the club even when it was in the 3rd tier of English football but I didnt think you whinged and moaned about refereering decisions like those kocks from Salford. You are not the only ones who have been shafted by their inconsistency and you wont be the last. Everyone suffers from their completely inefficient and haphazard governance of the game. The FA are an absolute joke and have been for many years but dont play the victim and think you are the only ones. I thought City fans knew the game better than that.
trader
Every tackle has to be taken on it's own merit, had Glenn Johnson caught Lescott, he could have broken his leg, leaping with both feet off the ground, from that distance, should have resulted in a RED CARD. But that's the problem we have, inconsistant ref's....
spu 4 life
i have to say i thought carroll's was 1 footed with the other underneath him but i will have a look at it again as i could be wrong..... we had spearing sent off for a 2 foot tackle that won the ball clearly more clearer than kompany's yet he still got a red card kompany's tackle was a GREAT tackle i can not see for the life of me why he got sent off.... if that was a red card then so was glen johnson who i thought made a great tackle also..... yet no red card (not that i wanted him to get one being a red and that). then we have the tackle made by cababye which was a leg breaker and not even a yellow then we have the career ending tackle that hutton made on shane long and that didnt even get a freekick and the FA did nothing about it either so i think they should come out and explain there resasons because it seems if you win the ball 2 footed you get sent offand if you nearly break and players leg you get away with it..... i think the FA and there refs are showing the world that our league is getting more shocking by the day..... which will only lead to players leaving/ not coming over here..... TIME TO SORT IT OUT.
muffdaddy1983
Cheers Muffdaddy - that is precisely the response I'm looking for from rival fans. Enough is enough - we all know that none of the incidents yesterday warranted a red card, just as Kompany's tackle on Ninny didn't (add Milijas to that list), yet we've seen far, far worse this season go unpunished or escape with a yellow card - Cabye and Lampard being just two examples. It really is time for all football fans to kick up a fuss over this issue and say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!
fifthcolumnblue
Inconsistancy in reffing is ruining our game - Kompanys was a good tackle - again Im a rag, Glendas tackle was much worse than Kompanys
niteworlok
I don't even think Kompany's was a booking, Glen Johnsons was imo potentially leg breaking and deserved a red imo, so I disagree with the author.
Guyver
"Right then. Who votes in favour of stopping all tackling? We could even get rid of boots. Thoughts?" - Michel *****ini, The Future
Johnny Baguette
It's about being consistent. The FA has said all two-footed tackles are straight red cards...so we see a clear two-footed tackle that wasn't even given as a free kick. If the FA wants to be "respected" they will ban Johnson for 3 games (I don't think he should be since Lescott was fine) since they stuck their noses up at us when we tried to appeal saying exactly that. The review process should take into account every challenge regardless of how it was taken care of by the refs. The fact that the FA says "oh, our hands are tied" when the ref "deals with it on the pitch" leaves the possibility of crooked officials ruining the game, as they can claim they saw it but didn't find it that bad of a challenge, or vice versa.
PhillyBlueMoon
Why stop there JB? Let's get rid of heading too because that could lead to serious head injuries. Why don't we stop players kicking the ball so hard while we're at it, a ball struck with enough force and hitting the wrong area of your body could lead to serious injury too.
Bluedub
Yep, it's all been too stressful this week. Let's clean up the game once and for all. No tackling, no heading and no kicking it hard.
Johnny Baguette
And no walls for free kicks. Man getting hit in groin: Dangerous. And cover goal frames in bubble wrap. Health & Safety in the Workplace.
rojo2010
H&S is a real stickler nowadays :P
niteworlok
Isn't there something in the said law, that more or less says it's down to the discretion of the ref whether he deems the tackle dangerous or not, that's bloody handy for the FA don't you think. Too many rules are down to the interpretation of the ref, changes are needed.
ten men
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