This week’s football review: FA Cup Shocks, Drawing Lots and Diego Costa
Good
The English FA Cup 4th Round threw up some amazing shocks last week as many of the favourites were beaten by lower-ranked teams: there were some real David and Goliath affairs. Premier League leaders Chelsea were beaten 4-2 at home by third-tier side Bradford City – and this after being 2-0 up, while second place Manchester City were beaten by Championship side Middlesbrough at home. Two more teams from the top 6 in England also lost at home: Tottenham and Southampton to Leicester and Crystal Palace respectively, while Liverpool were held by Championship side Bolton at home and Manchester United scraped a scoreless draw away at Cambridge from the fourth tier of English football. The romance of the cup? Absolutely!
Bad
West African side Guinea are through to the last 8 of the 2015 African Cup of Nations but only after the drawing of lots. They finished their Group D campaign with an identical points and goals scored record as Mali which meant that they could only be divided by the arbitrary choice of picking a ball from a bowl. Surely there must be a better way of deciding this?
Ugly
Chelsea striker Diego Costa has been banned by the English FA for three games after he was found guilty of stamping on Liverpool player Emre Can’s ankle in the League Cup semi-final second leg. The Football Association retrospectively imposed the ban as the match officials did not spot the incident. The Brazilian-born striker, who has a reputation of playing ‘on the edge‘, appealed against the sanction but this was denied meaning he will miss the Blues next three games including the crucial match against Manchester City this weekend.
Vocabulary
threw up: Provided
scraped: Just managed (suggests that they were a little lucky)
arbitrary: Random
has been banned: He will not be allowed to play in a game
stamping on: Deliberately standing on another player (an aggressive act with the bottom of the foot)
retrospectively imposed the ban: The FA gave the ban/handed out the ban after the incident (retrospectively)
did not spot the incident: Did not see it
on the edge: Playing to the limit of the rules
the Blues: The nickname of Chelsea