Gerrard Blames Arsenal Fans & Kos Reaction For Cole Red

• zocoss

  16 Aug 10, 13:10

  Liverpool will appeal to overturn Joe Cole red card after new Reds signing is left 'devastated'
  

   

  

   

   

  Joe Cole was left 'devastated' after the first red card of his career cut short his Barclays Premier League debut for Liverpool at Anfield.

  The summer signing from Chelsea was inconsolable in the dressing room at half-time, seconds after a dismissal that may yet be challenged by Roy Hodgson.

  The Liverpool manager, reflecting on a lunging challenge by Cole that left Arsenal newcomer Laurent Koscielny fearing he had broken his leg, said: 'I have seen the TV replays and they suggest he is a little bit unlucky. 

   

  

  Red for a red: referee Martin Atkinson ends Joe Cole's Liverpool debut prematurely after his late challenge

   

   

  'He didn't dive at the player, he dived in front of the ball to try to stop it being cleared up the line.

  'He will be a big loss if he is suspended for three games, but we will see if we can find out from some refereeing expert if there is a case for appealing.

  'I don't want to make a frivolous appeal, that's for sure. but Joe has an unblemished disciplinary record. He has never been sent off before and has picked up very few yellow cards. He is not the sort who goes in for blood-curdling tackles.

  'He was devastated at half-time. It was his debut, the atmosphere was fantastic and he was desperate to do well. He was not at the top of his game, but he was trying so hard to get there.'

  Arsene Wenger initially feared Koscielny had become the latest Arsenal player to suffer a serious injury.

   

  

  'Leg breaker': Arsenal feared the worst over Koscielny after Cole's tackle

  
   

   

   

  The Arsenal manager said: 'The physio actually told me it could be broken, so it was a relief when we discovered his shin pad had protected him.

  'He has a big knock on his shin, and it seems Joe Cole kicked him well, if accidentally.'

  Arsenal were heading for defeat until Pepe Reina was beaten by Marouane Chamakh in the last minute and compounded the error by pushing the ball over the line after it rebounded off a post.

  Hodgson said: 'Pepe has taken it hard. There were a lot of positives from his performance, but the negative was the goal which he would normally have kept out.'

  Wenger hinted Arsenal may be his last managerial job after signing a new three-year deal.

  

  Dropped: Pepe Reina scoops the ball into his own net

   

   

  'I love this club and felt that the best way to show my commitment, in the final year of my contract, was to sign a new one, rather than keep saying "maybe" every week,' he said.

  'Don't worry, you will see me leave one day, and if we can finish these years in front of me, with the team having done well, I will be happy. If I feel I can't take the team any further, I will go. But I tend not to plan decades ahead at my age.'

• zocoss

  16 Aug 10, 13:15

  Graham Poll: Joe Cole deserved red but Laurent Koscielny should never have departed
  

   

  THE OFFICIAL LINE By Graham Poll

   

  

  Nothing to smile about: Laurent Koscielny shouldn't have received his second yellow

   

   

  Joe Cole is not the type of player to intentionally hurt an opponent - that’s why he had never been sent off before yesterday.

  However, his challenge on Laurent Koscielny was made at pace, which endangered the safety of the Arsenal centre half, so a red card was the right decision.

   

   

  

  Debut disaster: Referee Martin Atkinson was right to show Joe Cole a red for this challenge

   

  Unusually, this tackle did not look so bad when shown in slow motion.
  

  Observers might have thought Martin Atkinson was influenced by the Arsenal crowd - who have seen Eduardo and Aaron Ramsey have legs broken by reckless tackles.

  The extent of a player’s injury should not affect a referee’s judgment and Atkinson wisely showed his card before Koscielny was carried off.

  Thankfully, the Arsenal man returned, and Cole was left to reflect on a three-match ban.

  Koscielny’s sending-off, on the other hand, was harsh. It is questionable whether it was even deliberate handball - let alone a booking.

  Yellow cards are only supposed to be given for deliberate handballs which break down attacking moves.

   

• zocoss

  16 Aug 10, 19:55

  LIVERPOOL INSIST COLE WAS UNLUCKY

  

   

   

   

  Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has seemingly suggested that Laurent Koscielny over-reacted to Joe Cole's tackle during Sunday's 1-1 draw with Arsenal and blamed the debutant's dismissal on the reaction of the away fans to his lunge. 

  After being carried off on a stretcher following Cole's challenge, Koscielny returned to the fray at the start of the second half - with his recovery prompting Gerrard to tell Match of the Day Two: 

  "When you see the player's reaction after the tackle you think that might be the end of his game but he sprinted back onto the pitch for the second half - but there you go." 

  Having described Cole as "a bit unlucky to get a red card" to Liverpool's official website, who themselves claim that 'most observers throught the straight red was harsh', Gerrard also went on to observe: 

  "A yellow would have been sensible. But if you make those tackles in front of the away supporters, it influences the referee and that's what happened." 

  Manager Roy Hodgson has confirmed that the club are considering making an appeal against Cole's sending off. 

  "I have seen the TV replays and they suggest Joe is a little bit unlucky," Hodgson declared. "He didn't dive at the player; he dived in front of the ball. Their player got hit in the leg. We are pleased to see it wasn't a serious injury to him because he was able to come out and play in the second half. 

  "He will be a big loss if he is suspended and maybe we will try and see if there is some way for the referee to have a look at it again, but I don't want to make a frivolous appeal, that's for sure. Joe has a great disciplinary record. He has never been sent off before and had only a few yellow cards. Anyone who watches Joe play knows he is not the sort of guy who goes in for bloodcurdling tackles."

• zocoss

  17 Aug 10, 01:02

  

   

   

   

   

  JOE COLE will miss Liverpool's next three domestic clashes after his red card against Arsenal.

  The England midfielder, who signed for the Reds this summer, was sent off in his first league match.

  He lunged at Gunners defender Laurent Koscielny during Sunday's 1-1 draw at Anfield. And Liverpool have confirmed they will not appeal the decision.

  A club statement said: "Liverpool will not contest the automatic three-game ban imposed upon Joe Cole.

  "Roy Hodgson said after the game that the club would analyse the incident before deciding whether to lodge an appeal.

  "Liverpool have now chosen not to take the matter further, meaning Cole will miss clashes against Manchester City, West Bromwich Albion and Birmingham City."