BobbyK

Where's the need for him to point it out though? Just get on with it because you know that you're so good the only way they can stop you is kicking you. </BLOCKQUOTE>

why shouldn't he point it out? referees have a duty to protect players, especially flair players who have the opposition setting out to kick them into submission. can't say i remember Ronaldo complaining about teams being physical, just when they've genuinely tried to kick him off the park, and as far as i'm concerned every player has the right to raise that as an issue. </BLOCKQUOTE>

Especially flair players? What? Nobody is more entitled to the referee's protection than another player. There's just no need for him to whine about it. Sure make a point to the relevant association or to the referee, that would be raising the issue. Not what he did though is it? I don't expect Mikel will be complaining about what West Ham did to him yesterday in the way Ronaldo does.

runronnirun

well non-flair players don't tend to have teams trying to kick them out of games?

as for 'not what he did though is it?' - what are you even referring to exactly? these occasions you vaguely recall but can't pinpoint where he's spoken about it? that's me convinced.

BobbyK

I vaguely recall yes because I don't have a back catalogue of Cristiano Ronaldo interviews in my head. You yourself acknowledged he'd said things about the hard tackling. So 'that's not what he did, is it?' is fine. Because it's not, we both, and no doubt countless others, can recall him speaking about it.

BobbyK

Mikel a flair player? Not really the issue either, 'flair' players, or any players shouldn't be getting extra protection.

retired_kris10nicole

What did they do? All i saw on MOTD was a tackle from behind he should have been sent off for.

runronnirun

i said he'd said things about being kicked (Boro last season for example), not hard tackling. Ronaldo pretty much a shining example of how to deal with the latter. every support for him complaining about the former. would cringe a bit if he was complaining about the latter, but unless you want to set about amassing that back catalogue of interviews to prove me wrong, i don't recall him doing so.

BobbyK

What did they do? All i saw on MOTD was a tackle from behind he should have been sent off for. </BLOCKQUOTE>

Fouls on him alone well into double figures. They tried to kick him out of the game because he can so often run it for us.

Nick, we've been talking about being kicked for the last two pages. I'm busy so I called it the wrong thing when typing out the post. wp on jumping on that to ignore the actual point i was making though.

runronnirun

Mikel a flair player? Not really the issue either, 'flair' players, or any players shouldn't be getting extra protection. </BLOCKQUOTE>

flair players, creative players, whatever. all very semanticy, always a bad sign for someone's argument. players who get targeted by the opposition unfairly should be something a referee is able to identify and deal with ASAP, if we want any kind of aesthetically pleasing, technically proficient football and footballers in this country. it's not about 'extra' protection as you keep banging on about.

retired_ivonta

wp andy gray blaming everything in the game on uriah rennie

runronnirun

erm, pointing it out entirely relevant to the point you're making. Ronaldo has no track record of complaining in interviews about hard tackling. he has on the odd occasion highlighted attempts to kick him out of a game, and as i've already stated, fair play to him. would have said the same thing if Mikel had done likewise (assuming he had a case, haven't seen the game, highlights suggested he gave more than as good as he got but the BBC are never the most even-handed editors).