Lately, it seems like there is an overabundance piety around the world of football. As Chelsea FC fans, we’ve all read articles vehemently slandering Diego Costa, so I thought I’d do the opposite and write an article vehemently defending him, albeit with a little bit more objectivity.
POPULAR: Chelsea FC Lacking On-Field Leadership
After the match on Saturday, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger described Costa’s actions on the pitch as being “disgusting”. Wenger went on to say that “he gets away with it because he plays well, with the nativity of the referee. I find that absolutely unacceptable”.
Well, for starters, that comment comes across as being quite hypocritical considering the fact that Wenger has reportedly tried to sign him more than once in the past.
Arsenal are set to bid £32m for Atletico Madrid's Diego Costa, Napoli may sign Chelsea's Juan Mata - it's the gossip http://t.co/eCp4tJsr3l
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) January 2, 2014
Not only has he tried to sign Costa, but he also tried to sign Luis Suarez in 2013 by activating his mammoth £40m release clause.
But anyway, everyone seemed to have a problem with Costa swiping his hands at Koscielny and goading Gabriel, but let’s take a step back from that for a moment and take a look at a few incidents that occurred prior to the main event.
Let’s start by identifying this stonewall penalty that Wenger and the rest of the media have thus far failed to mention:
Gabriel is clearly displaying no intention of playing the ball while obstructing Eden Hazard in the process. It should have been an easy decision for the referee who had a clear view of the incident.
The following could also have easily been a penalty on any other given day, where Costa looks to have been tripped by Santi Cazorla:
Diego Costa and Laurent Koscielny have at the centre of the biggest controversy so far this season. While Costa has been chastised in generous amounts, one would be hard-pressed to find any mainstream sources that identify the following events as a cause and effect for Costa lashing out.
The above image begins to explain Arsenal’s strategy when trying to contain Costa. Koscielny has his hands all over Costa in an attempt to stop him from freely moving off-the-ball. He clearly displays no intention of playing the ball that might have come in and only is clearly only interested in stopping Costa from connecting with the ball.
"View post on imgur.com"
Now, Costa is seen flailing his arms around and in the process catches Koscielny; however, consider the complete situation. Hazard has the ball and is looking to see if Costa is in a position to meet his cross. What he sees is Costa being bear-hugged by Koscielny, which means that that option is ruled out and he ends up passing the ball to Pedro instead. There were no replays showing us that nor was this ever discussed.
Every controversial situation needs to be evaluated fully, not simply through selective replays. In my opinion, both players should have received a yellow card following the incident outlined above. Costa wasn’t looking to injure Koscielny, he was simply fed-up of being grabbed each time he entered Arsenal’s box.
Finally, the chest bump that rocked the world. In the image below, Koscielny can be clearly seen wrapping his around all around Costa, then follows that by hurling him to the ground. This angers Costa, who tries to assert his dominance through a chest bump on Koscielny.
"View post on imgur.com"
Not only were we not shown a replay of Koscielny throwing Costa to the ground, but keeping score, that makes three penalties decisions that weren’t awarded in Chelsea’s favour or discussed by anyone.
It is the first time I’ve seen anyone in the media condemn a team or a player for agitating a counterpart (or counterparts) from the opposition team. Irritating your opponents is part of the game. In fact, the Chelsea side of 2004-06 did it regularly by coming out of the gates storming and putting in hard tackles.
More from Chelsea FC News
- Bournemouth vs Chelsea: 1 Blue Mauricio Pochettino should drop
- Bournemouth vs Chelsea: 3 Blues who must start
- Predicted Chelsea lineup vs Bournemouth: Palmer starts in 4-2-3-1
- Chelsea sporting directors finally reveal why they sign so many young players
- These 3 new signings may never get a game at Chelsea
This tactic was so successful that teams began to fear the team. Even as early as last season, Everton were applauded for ruffling Costa’s feathers during the match with some claiming that he is his own worst enemy because of his temper and that exploiting it is simply a tactical response in dealing with him.
Moving on, the FA dropped charges of violent conduct for Gabriel yesterday. It is something that I personally agree with. What I don’t agree with, however, is the fact that they decided to completely withdraw his 3 match ban. Football has always been a contact sport, especially English football, which has long been known for its physicality; however, lately everyone seems to run for cover whenever the topic of aggression comes up.
The world has seemingly forgotten the likes of Dennis Wise, Roy Keane, Patrick Viera and Jamie Carragher. Roy Keane is still celebrated for his aggressive streak while Carragher had more bone-crunching tackles to his name than Costa could ever dream of. As fans of English football, we have all enjoyed the passion that these players brought to the game; moreover, we took pride in the physical and competitive nature of the Premier League.
Having said that, Gabriel should have been sent off regardless of the flick on Costa. One of the incidents where he gets away without a booking for a tackle on Hazard is cited below:
"View post on imgur.com"
Considering this tackle, plus the shove on Hazard mentioned earlier, plus the flick on Costa, he should have seen three yellow cards on Saturday. That is at least a 1 match ban.
Since Wenger has no trouble lavishly handing out labels for opposition players, perhaps he should generous enough to preserve some for players within his own squad too:
The above video is from the same fixture last season while the image below is from Saturday’s match. In the image below, Sanchez can be seen elbowing Ivanovic in the ribs/back, leaving the defender in some pain.
"View post on imgur.com"
So if Costa’s behaviour was disgusting, how would one categorize this? Does it not matter that we look at the complete picture rather than take a few incidents out of context purely to satisfy a sadistic desire of hate? Perhaps rationality is beyond television networks because what matters at the end of the day are ratings. Creating a common villain and blowing his actions out of proportion creates drama, and drama always sells.
I certainly think Costa has been vilified to an excessive extent, but what do you think? Get involved and leave us your thoughts in the comments below!
Next: Chelsea FC, The Victims Of A Biblical Battle