Match week 15
A week in which Tottenham reports 11 cases of COVID, canceling even more games in a busy period, UEFA fumbles up CL-draw and Sam Kerr tackles a pitch invader
Another week full of facepalm moments - which is all that my football fandom seems to consist of at the moment. That and enjoying Juventus’ poor form (it was a gorgeous win that Atalanta grinded out against them).
I haven’t gotten to watch my team play for some time now as it’s been BUSY in the Spurs camp but for all the wrong reasons. Tottenham reported a heap of positive COVID-19 cases - eight players, nine members of staff as well as some U-23 players having tested positive initially, causing fixtures against Rennes in the Europa Conference League, as well as Brighton in the Premier League, to get postponed. This after we already had another game against Burnley called off right before due to bad weather. Yesterday it was reported that another first-team player has tested positive, only days away from a trip to Leicester and with some of the initially sick players back in training. É un gran casino.
I already had a lot of anger built up regarding the fixture list around the holiday period (as I always do) and this has just further exasperated my point (haters will now say that it’s partly Tottenham’s fault for having a thin squad, I will not disagree but I still think that the amount of games the players are expected to play, especially during a time (and a year! the past two years!) when all most people want is to spend time with their families, is simply ridiculous.) Furthermore, we have one of the most training-enthusiastic managers out there, as Antonio Conte is infamous for his tough training sessions, and apparently not even having caught a deadly virus can stop the Italian from putting his players through the paces.
The players who tested negative, or had recovered from Covid, in the wake of the first outbreak reported for training yesterday for a brutal double session (Daily Mail)
Regardless of the extent to which this is through (one has to hope that there are sensible coaches and medical staff in there), it’s very chaotic to me to throw these players people back out onto the pitch to keep up with in-form teammates who have not just been ill, regardless of the severity of it. Paulo Dybala was just one of many athletes who struggled after catching the disease and has been open about that.
With yet another confirmed case at Tottenham, it remains to be seen whether they can field a starting-eleven on Thursday against Leicester, or if also that fixture is going to have to go on the pile of postponed games that I do not want to think about (how are we going to catch up).
Talking about big messes, UEFA managed to get themselves into yet another one when they fumbled up the draw for the Champion’s League. It’s as if they really want to write us on the nose about just how inadequate they are.
My highlight of the week involved Sam Kerr and a pitch invader, an iconic moment really but for a lot of bad reasons unfortunately. As Chelsea were playing at home at Kingsmeadow for their Champion’s League tie against Juventus, a man invades the pitch (because they always have to insert themselves into everything, don’t they). He is sauntering around, filming himself, bothering the players and interrupting the game, as the players try to plead with him/push him away as he comes close etc. Then Kerr just decides to take matter into her own hands and she bodychecks him, sending the man flying (it’s hilarious). He is then escorted off, but the referee gives Kerr a yellow card for the incident (which to me is simply outrageous). After the game the lack of police presence is strongly criticised, as it turns out that there is actually none at all at women’s games in the UK.
Furthermore, it turns out that the man is going to go unpunished, as he can’t be charged under the current laws in plays for pitch invasion, seeing as they only apply to men’s games, according to the Athletic. Section 4 of the Football (Offences) Act of 1991 states that it is an offence for a person to go onto the playing area at a designated football match, with the 2004 provision clarifying that the term “designated matches” applies to a match “in which one or both of the participating teams represents a club which is for the time being a member of the Football League, the Football Association Premier League, the Football Conference or the League of Wales, or represents a country or territory”, completely excluding the women’s game.
Facepalms all around. If there’s one positive thing to take from this it’s the fact that Sam Kerr has done more for the publicity of the women’s game this week than a lot of marketing pounds ever could, cause I guess everyone do enjoy seeing a man being body-slammed to the ground.