Paul Robinson makes a fool of himself over Wenger comments

These are comments made by Paul Robinson, the Bolton defender who almost broke Abou Diaby’s leg with a brutal, shin-high tackle, in reply to Arsene Wenger’s absolutely correct comments about dangerous tackling.

“I’m a committed player who wants to win all the time. I don’t go in to hurt people – that’s not my game – I just want to win the ball and I’m fully committed. Whatever [Wenger] says is down to him. It won’t affect me because I do it week in, week out so let him have his say. It doesn’t bother me.

“It’s a physical game. Are we going to just walk around on the pitch and should defenders just let players walk past them? Is it going to come to a point where you’re not allowed to tackle people? There are certain tackles that are not acceptable in the game but it’s a hard sport, a sport where you put your bodies on the line. There are a lot of players in the game who are winners and who want to win, so how do you stop that?

“When the ball is there to be won you have to go in to try to win it and I don’t believe players go out to deliberately injure opponents. It’s just not in their minds. Obviously sometimes you’re going to catch a player – that happens – but it’s just unfortunate. But is it going to stop tackling in games? I hope not because that will spoil the game.”

Leaving aside the fact that a player who committed this tackle is calling it “unfortunate”, the ignorance of his question “are we going to just walk around on the pitch and should defenders just let players walk past them?” is astonishing and clearly shows he did not even hear the manager’s comments following the game.

For the record, here they are:

“The tackle on Abou was definitely a sending-off offence – it was horrendous and I think the authorities should look at it again and do something about it. Abou could have had his leg broken.”

“Don’t get me wrong – sometimes my players commit bad fouls. Yet the beauty of the game is down to the fact that you play with commitment, with passion but also with the right intention. If you have a good sliding tackle where the player takes the ball, it’s as good to see as a player scoring a goal. But when a guy closes his eyes and jumps with anger it’s not right.”

“When I say: ‘This is a bad foul,’ I just say: ‘This is a bad foul.’ I do not consider who it is, where it is or the manager. I just think it is a bad foul.”

Thoughts?

Have your say on Robinson and Wenger by leaving a comment.

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Comments

  1. I don’t think there’s any complexity to this matter, really. Robinson is a thickheaded clogger. Turns out it isn’t just the manager and El Hadji Diouf (have you seen his car? http://ow.ly/2KXQd) who’s delusional at Blackburn..

  2. It’s this sort of total bullsh1t supported by an unfortunately large majority of knuckle dragging PL managers that will ensure skillful players keep getting their snapped in half while the perpetrator walks away with a 3 game ban (at most – on other occasions maybe not even a yellow) and the same old sh1t about them “not being that kind of player”

    It’s also the reason England will never succeed at international level while this mindset remains. You’d think people would be congratulating Wenger for producing players with such technique & talent. I believe in any other country he would be revered as a genius. But sadly you only need to see the comments above to see how utterly retarded English football has become.

  3. It took me about 2 minutes to read and write this, 2 minutes off my life I’ll never get back!! God dame you Paul Robinson!!!

  4. It just makes sense for the FA to use video evidence to punish bad behavior. Whether it’s a bad tackle, or other off the ball shenanigans they should be punished accordingly. Most other sports will fine a player after the game using video evidence… just seems the right thing to do.

    Party On!

  5. I hate this rubbish that if we do play Arsene’s way England suffers. Hmm, the Bundesliga is physical, and last I looked Germany does well in tourneys. Mexico no pyhsical play and they stink.

    Wenger is the biggest hypocrite in the game. He managed one of the dirtiest teams ever (and also a team that could win, unlike these fairies), and never saw a foul, and now he is Mother Theresa.

    I wish Arsenal went back and played a little tougher. We cannot compete with teams like Chelsea, and have almost no plan B.

  6. and ken?who is it you actually support?aw managed one of the “dirtiest” teams ever?you got me there old son..please,please don’t drag up the names of keown,adams & bould-the “cliche”used by anyone to justify the current crop of neanderthal leg breaking sides doing the rounds of the english prem-those three were hard & FAIR -i cannot EVER remember any of the ever getting sent off for breaking legs,can you?

  7. Ken,

    WTF are you talking about? Are you incapable of actually reading and interpreting quotes. Where does it say Wenger dislikes physical play and proper committed tackles? Where does it say Wenger believes his players never foul? Nowhere. In fact it says the opposite. All he’s really saying is that dangerous tackles (as defined in the laws of the game i.e. tackles which are actually illegal in football) should be investigated and punished retrospectively so that players are less likely to commit them in the first place. That would apply equally to all teams. Its really not hard to understand mate…

    Besides, there’s nothing brave or tough about a studs up flying karate kick into another players legs. It’s actually pathetic bullshit because it’s relatively safe for the tackler and relatively dangerous for the player being tackled. Not even in genuine contact sports (with genuine physicality) do they condone cowardly behaviour like that.

  8. I don’t think Robinson is able to think in anything other than 1 dimension, the subtle nuances of actually listening to what someone says before brainfarting out a few cliches seem to have escaped him. It’s a shame that this kind of ‘thinking’ pervades the game but I doubt it’s going to change much, as long as we can keep it down to only one horrific legbreak per 18 months we should be ok though.

  9. Robinson is an A-hole! It was an awful challenge and if he was any kind of a man he’d just put his hands up and say, “Yes I’ve seen the replays and it was a bad tackle but I didn’t intend to hurt the other player”. Instead, what he has chosen to do is get straight on the defensive which immediately makes him look guilty!
    It never ceases to amaze me how people over react to anything AW says. Its no wonder that we get so much negative press – AW gives an open and honest press conference and then everyother manager, every player and every pundit suddenly feels that they have to put their 2bob in. These comments were made last week, we have played another game since then and AW has given at least one if not 2 or 3 press conferences since but other teams managers and players keep bringing this sh*t back up! Its no wonder we get such a bad rap as moaners, but in reality it’s rarely our players of manager thats making the comments being reported in the press.

  10. I challenge Robinson to do pilates for 3 hour straight consecutively while balancing a watermelon on our head. The winner will be decided whoes abs is more washboard than Michael Sorrentino.

  11. Okay I’m sorry, its just that the defeat to WBA had made me depressed that I had to watch Jersey Shore and reality tv to drive away the pain.

    Anyway Robinson is a first class muppet, should just quit football and try a career in lifting rocks.

  12. Hi shambo,
    Did we really get ….. points on Saturday. I dont want to mension the number incase i jinx the team.
    Unfortunate result for Wengers boys, hopefully they will bounce back straight away. Although i fear there were signs of a lack of pace and strength in the CH position and tiredness from one or two other players. I still see the team based far to much on silky light weight energy which has a nasty habbit of running dry unexpectedly. It has strength of mind and character but also requires more strength of body to cope with the impact of the English prem. You also seem to keep picking so many injuries…….why is this still so…….When will Wenger address it. Good luck for the CL tonight. Up de ammers.

  13. Ken the US play’s physical and they stink even more not technical talent just a bunch of hack’s that wish they played like the English but suck at trying..Talentless skill less shit team the US is

  14. He’s just an idiot. Just waiting on the day when some of this loud mouth coaches lose one of their best players for 9 months then we see how they feel. Honestly, the british press is not helping matters at all. Everyone is saying tackles are fair and its part of the game, wonder what would have been said if rooney lost his legs due to tackles just before the world cup. Yeah…crime against humanity. Guess they can be racial too. English players are special more than the rest…reason I can tell you england will not win anything for decades to come. Mark my words.

  15. 14 Ed September 28, 2010 at 5:17 pm
    Ken the US play’s physical and they stink even more not technical talent just a bunch of hack’s that wish they played like the English but suck at trying..Talentless skill less shit team the US is

    Was that English?

    No, sorry I disagree. When Arsenal was good, we were tough. In case youd id not know we led the league in red cards and won the EPL. No we win nothing and win Fair League table. Yippy!!

    Stubo September 28, 2010 at 2:32 pm
    Where does it say Wenger believes his players never foul?

    Hmm, I guess you must be new to Arsenal. Because whenever we fouled anyone, Wenger said “I did not see it” when everyone on the planet saw it including Wenger. So he essentially denies it. Sorry, you are new to team and did not know this.

    Sorry, just not an Arsene Knows guy. Think team is headed in wrong direction. You can disagree and I apperciate that, but 5 years and no silverware maked me think I have a point. We have almost no plan B

    And btw, we are close to the bottom of fair league table right now. Makes it ridiculous that Wenger is spouting every week about tackles. Stop commenting about other teams players/tactics, and straighten our team out. I know FAB will leave us, and I just do not see us winning anything anytime soon.

    But again, to the Wenger is always right crowd: See Almunia!

  16. Andrew im from the US was just pointing out how Ken was bashing Mexico for no reason,The US trys and copy the English game but it has got them no where,Instead of trying that failed plan why not try and play more technical like Mexico or better yet the South American’s is my point..

  17. Great result! Fabianski had a good game, we knew that was going to happen sooner or later, but can he be consistan? We’ll see.

  18. @ken we understand ur frustration, we re aswell. the past years says it all.u just ‘ve to be optimistic 4 the team. robinsons tackle was a bad one, no debate abt it nd we suffer such tackles most cos of the way we play. nd most managers think its the best we to get a result against us.though physically we re improving and physicality shld not be an excuse for lost games.

  19. Ken is spot on. Why do people keep dragging up the Paul Robinson foul? It’s gone. Let it go.

    Desperation comes from a lack of success and there is nothing more desperate than to bring up an incident that happened over a month ago against a team no one cares about.

    It was bad challenge. Deserved a red card. Didn’t get one. It doesn’t however, deserve this level of debate. He’s not a thug on the street. He’s a sportsman who attempted to make a sliding tackle and mistimed it.

    This article is just pure snobbery and comes from people who clearly had no idea what Arsenal were prior to Arsene Wenger or the premier league.

  20. Hi Guys………I think Robinson exudes the animosity and hatred that has peversed the lenght and breadth of EPL against Arsenal as a club and people. I find it difficult to understand why a player will want to throin tackes that will end a fellow palyers carrier and calls that passion and committment…….that is real bushit. Robinson with all his committment and passion is yet to get Blackburn into any continental torny. I am so upset the way and manner referees treat Arsenal palyers, is it because the manager and the majority of the palyers are not English? Please FIFA preaches and fairness and sportmanship but it plays out negatively whenever teams meet Arsenal. Another instance i where Drogba of Chelsea pushes his sons playing in Arsenal out of the way to score goals and the referees turn a blind eye on it. Several goals scored against Arsenal last term were referees aided by nt making call when the keepers were wrongly challenged. Though I am not holding forth for Almunia and cohorts, but this gang up against the team must stop

  21. I saw I took some heat for my posts, and my apologies. A win makes everything seem better I guess.

    But I came across this article by Keown, and I think it made my point.

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1315680/Stoke-star-Kenwyne-Jones-stopped-bullying-him.html?

    Here, Keown says only way to stop this player is to “bully him.” I actually agree and wish we had that in us, but I think Wenger’s tackle talk is a deflection cause he built a soft team. The fact we lack spine is noted by many. I wish we had a little more of this mentality. And funny thing is, if this quote came from Allarydyce or some such coach about saying stoping Fabergas, many of our fans would be up in arms.

    I just preferred our teams when we had a bit of teeth to our game. Now I feel like we have loads of skill, but are too soft

    anyway, great win

  22. Arsenal boys are not rough but play silky and hard but fair football that is why we also get booked. so for those of you who say take roughness for having spine, you are wrong.
    AW believes in tackles but fair challenges and most of the horrendious tackles we see are as a result of the other player not pulling put of the tackle knowing fully well that he has mis-timed his challenge but still goes ahead to make the tackles. I have read in one of the earlier comments befoer now and i will support it that for as long as the player who received damages is out of the game, the allegded offender should also be MIA. A 3 match ban doesnt suffice and that is why the knucklehead Robinson will justify his stupidity and cowardice as committment. Who is not committed to winning? Until FIFA/UEFA makes laws that will use video evidence to punish, we should be ready to continue to see such horrific tackles on players who play with flair, skills and its not only in Arsenal, the world over players like Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, etal all suffer the same. we have said it before, i am sure the English FA will wake up only when a Rooney, Lampard, Gerrard, are injured before they take action. Look at Ramsey, he has been out for so long, yet the Animal who broke is leg is back and appointed captain of his club. Arsenal & AW will continue to play the way football should be played adn sooner thatn later, he will be justified.

    Fabianski will mature with time as long as he can take his chances which was what Almunia did when Lehman was fumbling, the rest they say is history. it is too late now but i think AW might bring in a world stopper in Winter.

    by the ways, i dont see England going beyond where they have always been, 2nd round or 1/4 of any major competition because the dePRESSed boys and some refs are spoil sports. all we see is the hype, no substance. those who make the EPL thick are foreigners and the majority are in Arsenal.

    lets keep the spirit high..

  23. Five years with no silverware, five years, five years, just stop it with the five years! Know what happened to Chelsea when they were redeveloping Stamford Bridge? They were relegated. Because they had no money to buy players and no players from any youth programme. Then they were almost relegated to the third division. Then they were almost (maybe they were, I’m not sure) sold off for one pound or something very similar. And their drought ran on for about fifty years. Man U? They’ve had Old Trafford for donkeys years. And still in debt. Liverpool? The other most successful club in EPL history? Look at how they’re doing now! Have some perspective, people. To have a title drought of ONLY five years, while going through some tough financial times and rehauling an entire system? Staying in the top four, being actual contenders, while going through the kind of changes when any other club would be close to relegation! How can anybody not see that as an achievement?
    And football is supposed to have fair tackles. For crying out loud, AW is saying follow the bloody rules. If his players make illegal tackles, punish them. If others do, punish them. If the knuckle-draggers want that changed, how bout changing the rules?
    Also, just because our teams have played dirty before does not make it right. Recognising it was not the right way to play the game and changing things takes courage. That’s something AW has done. People who bring about change are always abused, look at history!

  24. I don’t think there’s any complexity to this matter, really. I hate this rubbish that if we do play Arsene’s way England suffers. I wish Arsenal went back and played well.

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