{"id":825686,"date":"2025-02-09T10:13:19","date_gmt":"2025-02-09T16:13:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/02\/09\/arsenal-faux-outrage-on-ref-abuse-is-smokescreen-for-biased-michael-oliver\/"},"modified":"2025-02-09T10:13:19","modified_gmt":"2025-02-09T16:13:19","slug":"arsenal-faux-outrage-on-ref-abuse-is-smokescreen-for-biased-michael-oliver","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/02\/09\/arsenal-faux-outrage-on-ref-abuse-is-smokescreen-for-biased-michael-oliver\/","title":{"rendered":"Arsenal: ‘Faux outrage’ on ref abuse is ‘smokescreen’ for ‘biased’ Michael Oliver"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

People get death threats all the time on social media so why is Michael Oliver special? It\u2019s one take among many as Arsenal \u2018crybabies\u2019 continue to whine.<\/p>\n

Send your thoughts on all subjects to th*******<\/span>@*********<\/span>65.com<\/span><\/p>\n

Not all Arsenal fans<\/strong>
\nThe \u201cholier than thou\u201d tone of your article<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is just astonishing \u2013 as if Football365 is not part of the problem\u2026<\/p>\n

Just the headline itself says it all \u2013 \u2018Arsenal fans and media must share the blame\u2026\u2019. Yes, let\u2019s stoke up Arsenal fans and those that hate them by saying (implying in effect) it\u2019s all Arsenal fans.<\/p>\n

All Arsenal fans? Perhaps just the small number that are actually making the death threats? Really, it\u2019s just the media, isn\u2019t it? And the social media platforms that promote the nastiness.<\/p>\n

Perhaps a more accurate headline \u2013 and one more in line with the point you are trying to make in your article would be something like \u2018Media, social media trolls and a small number of Arsenal fans must share the blame\u2026\u2019. Or maybe don\u2019t refer to Arsenal fans at all, and just say \u201csome so called football fans\u201d? Depending on which team is on the wrong end of the decision, it could be \u201cfans\u201d of any club.<\/p>\n

Please take heed of the very last paragraph of your article. And make up your mind \u2013 do you want to be a serious football website, or not?<\/p>\n

If you print this, fair play to you. If you don\u2019t (or even if you do, to be honest!), then I do rather feel inclined not to visit Football365 anymore. It\u2019s got quite unpleasant over the last year or so, I\u2019m afraid. I used to love your website, so it\u2019s a bit sad.
\nJohn, North London<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n

\u2026Football really isn\u2019t more important than life and death. It never was and never will be.<\/p>\n

The 3pm kick-off was meant to give workers something to do when they knocked off work on a Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s supposed to be a distraction from the cares of the world.<\/p>\n

For the record, I didn\u2019t think it was a red, but if you think making death threats to a referee because he made a decision you didn\u2019t like is okay, then I can\u2019t help you. You need to give your head a wobble.
\nGraham Simons, Gooner, Norf London<\/strong><\/p>\n

Can we stop this faux outrage about social media?
\n<\/strong>I understand this might appear as a provocative statement but I am sick and tired of the faux outrage expressed concerning the recent attacks via social media on the likes of Kai Havertz and Michel Oliver.<\/p>\n

In no way do I excuse or condone the attacks and feel due sympathy for the individuals. However, I find the performative \u2018concern\u2019 ludicrous. I just watched a Sky Sports segment with Jamie Carragher, Jamie Redknapp and Lee Hendrie pearl clutching over the abuse hurled Michael Oliver\u2019s way, as if somehow, out of nowhere a firehose of hate has sprung up and it cannot be tolerated within football\u2019s warm and embracing culture.<\/p>\n

Colour me confused, but I thought it was common knowledge social media has been a cesspool for years where threats of death, violence or rape are common place and made against countless individuals on a daily basis. Take last year alone. When Trump turned his ire on a judge(s), an opposition politician or a celebrity they endured a torrent of abuse \u2013 death threats, doxxing etc. When Elon Musk took over Twitter he turned his hate on a gay executive he ultimately fired and subsequent threats forced him out of house and home. That before the \u2018genius\u2019 Musk invited all the neo Nazis back onto the platform.<\/p>\n

So as noted, countless individuals face this abuse every day. It\u2019s the ugly world we live in. Do I accept or approve of it? No, I don\u2019t. But then, I made a calculated decision many years to never join Facebook or Twitter etc. \u2013 a sort of simple but effective protest. And in the ensuing years, I have taken every opportunity I could within various forums to note the corrosive effects of said media.<\/p>\n

So, unless I have seen the likes of a Jamie Redknapp for example out there in the real world campaigning for deeper rules and regulation across the social media then I really don\u2019t want to hear some crap about the matter when it ends up in his perceived back yard. Having established (as everyone goddamn knows) this is simply contemporary life, warts and all, how about doing the sensible thing and not giving the hate oxygen?<\/p>\n

What bugged me about the call for sympathy for Kai Havertz was the smokescreen for his poor play. Again, does that mean he should be abused in that manner? No, but unless were sticking up for each and every person abused yesterday or today, spare me the picking and choosing.<\/p>\n

Worst still Michael Oliver incident. On the Sky Sports fainting couch, they just read the full PGMOL statement which had issued because of the on line abuse against Oliver. Ludicrous smokescreen because Oliver, VAR and the PGMOL flubbed a choice directly after the game had ended.<\/p>\n

Michael Oliver himself, VAR and the PGMOL could have issued an apology minutes after the game ended recognizing a serious mistake had been made. Oliver could have admitted he\u2019d made a rash decision \u2013 let\u2019s leave his long and now famous history of screwing Arsenal over out of this conversation. VAR could have apologized for deciding not to contest the on field call, then the PGMOL could have stated this was an unfortunate event which they would duly review with particular focus on the dynamic between the referee and the VAR officials.<\/p>\n

I\u2019d hazard a guess that would have diffused about 90% or so of the online \u2018hate\u2019 right then and there.<\/p>\n

Instead of which the PGMOL acted with their usual impunity until most everyone had called Oliver out for his bias, so it\u2019s out with the social media sympathy card and let\u2019s have the likes of dim bulb Jamie Redknapp insisting Michael Oliver is The Best Ref Ever, and how truly, deeply they are shocked at the hate which issues forth from social media.<\/p>\n

So, do us all a favor \u2013 that would be the likes of Michael Oliver, Jamie Carragher, Auntie Outrage whoever one and all \u2013 delete Xitter, delete Facebook and all social media apps today to accomplish something meaningful and tangible in terms of sincere protest.<\/p>\n

Otherwise shut the hell up about social media and stick to the issue that Michael Oliver has an unquestionable bias, the PGMOL is not fit for purpose and can we at least insist that VAR immediately becomes an independent body without referee involvement.
\nDom<\/strong><\/p>\n

You won; move on
\n<\/strong>It\u2019s one of life\u2019s great mysteries: are Arsenal and their fans a bunch of whiny crybabies because they get the raw end of the deal from officials, or do they get the raw end of the deal because they\u2019re a bunch of whiny crybabies?<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve long believed punishments for fouls that make no attempt to win the ball should be severe, or at least more than those that do. This is already the case for penalties and could easily be applied to the whole game.<\/p>\n

Myles Lewis-Skelly was only concerned with stopping Matt Doherty by any means necessary, and did so by crunching him with stud-first contact above the ankle. This is exactly the sort of challenge, from any player on any team, that needs removing from football, and the most effective way to do that is to ramp up the punishment until players adapt their game. And I don\u2019t think \u201clegitimately try to win the ball every time you tackle an opponent\u201d is expecting too much of professional footballers.<\/p>\n

I had to double check after the match because I would never have guessed from all the discussions that Wolves also had a player sent off, and that Arsenal won. And perhaps that\u2019s the problem: they\u2019re so focussed on their personal sense of injustice that it is holding them back, when the most successful teams each year are the ones best able to put it behind them.<\/p>\n

So here\u2019s my suggestion to Arsenal: move on, or if you don\u2019t want to, at least sulk quietly so the rest of us can.
\nEd Quoththeraven<\/strong><\/p>\n

Football fans forced VAR
\n<\/strong>Yes the problem with VAR is us. But we\u2019re the same problem that brought us VAR in the first place, we need to just grow up and accept decisions, however they land. Even if someone invents a Terminator style referee who can get every decision \u2018right\u2019, we\u2019ll still be complaining.<\/p>\n

How do I know? Because I remember when this didn\u2019t happen. Obviously there\u2019s always been grumbling, who\u2019s the B or the W in the black, etc. But hundreds of death threats? Doxxing? Selling private info to the tabloids? No.<\/p>\n

Carragher is getting sick of the conspiracy theory weirdos turning grievance over something that happens in a children\u2019s game into co-ordinated outrage, and it was good to hear someone say it.<\/p>\n

But where did this start, Jamie? When the Big Match had TV rights, I don\u2019t remember Elton Welsby asking a clearly 3 S to the W Jim Smith\/Jack Charlton\/Mick Shannon\/ etc at half time to endlessly pick over the bones of a 50-50 refereeing decision. But ITV wasn\u2019t run by someone whose MO to running media was, 1 find a scapegoat, 2 destroy them.<\/p>\n

Either we get over ourselves and just put up with humans being human, or we carry on pretending there is a perfect solution out there that the Elite is keeping from us and spend our lives being angry.<\/p>\n

Btw \u2013 Norway has just voted to get rid of VAR. There is a way out if we want it.
\nNeil Raines (Peter Bankes is a [redacted])<\/strong><\/p>\n

Can we please be entertained?
\n<\/strong>Well, well, well, another day, another utterly soulless display from my beloved Manchester United<\/strong><\/a>. Oh, rejoice, for we have triumphed! A 1-0 slog against Fulham. Let us engrave it into the annals of footballing history, alongside the thrilling likes of Greece 2004 and Mourinho\u2019s Inter circa \u201ceveryone park the bus.\u201d Lisandro Martinez, our valiant warrior, scores the solitary goal, and here we are again, dragging ourselves over the finish line like a hungover jogger at a charity run.<\/p>\n

This is what we have been reduced to. \u201cLast minute winners,\u201d they call it. \u201cA results-oriented approach.\u201d I call it \u201cwatching paint dry but with slightly more sponsorship logos.\u201d Oh, forgive me if I don\u2019t leap off my sofa in giddy delight every time we see 50.9% possession that results in one actual shot on target. Is this Manchester United? The club of swagger, of flair, of moments that make you fall hopelessly in love with the game? Or are we now a small-time side wearing Armani suits, desperately hoping no one notices the hole in the trousers?<\/p>\n

But hey, Amorim\u2019s \u201cworking,\u201d right? We\u2019re climbing back into top ten contention (barely) and managed to sneak past Fulham, who seem to forget how to play whenever we meet at Craven Cottage. And yet, I find myself longing for the days when we had no strategy at all, and it was just Bruno Fernandes attempting a Hollywood pass every 30 seconds while Harry Maguire tripped over his own shadow. At least THAT was entertaining.<\/p>\n

Where is the spark? The joy? The football that makes you clutch your head and shout \u201cHOW TF?\u201d with equal parts disbelief and admiration? Not this dysfunctional, soulless, algorithm-approved version of football that we insist on serving up every week. It\u2019s as though someone asked ChatGPT to create the most efficient system for playing association football without risking human excitement.<\/p>\n

But, fine. Let us applaud the clean sheet and the fact that Lisandro Martinez has apparently decided to start doing Cristiano Ronaldo cosplays inside and outside the opposition\u2019s box. Let us revel in this win when on a normal day we couldn\u2019t score in a nightclub with a \u00a310,000 tab. Let us pretend that this is all fine because 12th place<\/strong><\/a> says we\u2019re \u201con track.\u201d<\/p>\n

In truth, though, I can\u2019t help but feel we\u2019re living in footballing purgatory. Stuck between the ecstasy of peak Ferguson and the cathartic chaos of post-Ferguson, enduring this Grey Goo version of the beautiful game. Oh, to see us try something audacious (Scotty \u201cToo Hotty\u201d McTominay was trying bicycle kicks against Juventus this weekend ffs). To see someone other than Martinez put their body on the line for the badge. To feel alive.<\/p>\n

Anyway, credit to Fulham for being a less embarrassing version of Southampton, and credit to Amorim for discovering that winning may indeed be sustainable if you have a small Argentinian warrior to bail you out every week. But please, I beg of you, Amorim\u2014can we have just one game that doesn\u2019t feel like a chore?<\/p>\n

Yours in misery and mild hope,
\nBart Simpson [Manchester United Fan, For My Sins] (Shoutout to Eric & Stewie, this feels effing therapeutic!)<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u20263 points, yeah! Still an absolute shit show.<\/p>\n

Rearguards,
\nLiam<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ange goes<\/strong>
\nMany years\u00a0ago Ange\u2019s style of play was seen in Melbourne as the future of football but it was an easy style to coach against. We were a weaker side where results were gained through defence then counter attack. Sounds familiar. He will always struggle against weaker side and do well against strong sides who attack. Until he accepts he needs a Plan B he will always struggle in the big leagues. His style of play is not conducive to the rigours of the PL.\u00a0 There appears to be no rhetoric regarding the injuries. Have the players been over worked?
\nMichael Devlin<\/strong><\/p>\n

They f*** you up do Spurs<\/strong>
\nI really wanted to resist adding my 2 pennies worth right now but, for some insane reason, this is the most invested that Tottenham Hotspur CC \u2013 yes, CC is correct, as in Comedy Club \u2013 has managed to get me in for many a year.<\/p>\n

As always, the world of social media is a polarising place with most views bordering on opposite sides. There\u2019s a lot of emotion. Rage. Pretty standard for football fans likely manifesting some deep-rooted childhood trauma that likely hasn\u2019t been dealt with. That\u2019s not a sleight. Just talking from sad firsthand experience. I digress\u2026..<\/p>\n

Whether you\u2019re keen on Ange\u2019s personality or not. Whether you\u2019re anti-Daniel or pro-Daniel (I don\u2019t think anyone is pro-Daniel?). Whether you believe what we currently have is good enough to garner better results or not.<\/p>\n

Regardless of all that and other information available, it can\u2019t be denied that Big Ange has done 2 things recently which are really not very good: firstly, he keeps droning on about about how much help we need and how certain players shouldn\u2019t be out there and bla bla bla. Secondly, he freely admits that Sarr was not fit enough to start, but he did. That\u2019s despite playing Archie Gray (a midfielder) at LB whilst having a fully fit, experienced and available LB on the bench. He might not be his cuppa tea but my goodness, what absolute stubbornness and neglect that is not to start Sergio. We are literally in the midst of the worst injury crisis we\u2019ve ever had and this bloke is starting unfit players?!<\/p>\n

Back to the first point. It really shows in the players\u2019 performance and demeanour that the manager has little belief in them. Like, really shows. If you constantly bang on about how sh*t the available players are (even if it is true) then they are going to notice that. Players that should be better right now are not and that\u2019s because, yes, they are knackered but they also have a manager talking smack. Imagine being a player starting for Ange and you\u2019re thinking \u2018yes! I\u2019m purely here because of desperation and as a last resort. What a boost!\u2019.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m firmly in the camp of; of course these injuries have had a hugely negative impact on us. Of course. However, Postecoglou is stubborn. Shows very little tactical nous. I mean, the Everton game. lol. The only time he demonstrated some flexibility with a formation and that resulted in us going 3 nil down to an Everton team who, ya know, are so notorious for banging them in.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve slept-walked ourselves into a relegation battle and on current form we are due to go down. Let that sink in. We would totally be that club that takes an eternity to get back up as well, a la Leeds. We are not built for that.<\/p>\n

Honestly, I just can\u2019t see how genuine fans are saying Ange is not part of the problem. We have been bad for a long time before this crisis. We really really have. People living off a few nice passages of play from 20 games ago \u2013 that more than often resulted in nothing \u2013 because it harks back to the good old days of the Tottenham Way are just straight up bonkers. Oh. \u2018Let\u2019s not forget the semi final we are in\u2019 I hear someone cry As if Liverpool aren\u2019t going to run up a cricket score next week making that whole argument completely pointless.<\/p>\n

Losing 13 games out of 23 is simply unacceptable. Losing 2-1 at home to Leicester. Have you seen their form? Ffs. The players. There is no leadership on the pitch. There are players who aren\u2019t giving their all. That\u2019s the coaches job to instil leadership and motivate players to do more. To be better. Who\u2019s he done that with?<\/p>\n

This football club drives me insane. I really f*cked up in a previous life to be cursed with this.
\nGlen, Stratford Spur<\/strong><\/p>\n

MAILBOX: Postecoglou proves he wants sacked but \u2018assault\u2019 overlooked by referee amid Arsenal discourse<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

An unpopular opinion on Daniel Levy
\n<\/strong>I am an Arsenal fan, I just need to put it out there. Daniel Levy has invested \u00a3300m plus in the Tottenham squad, under Ange \u2026who took over a team that played Champions League football the previous year. That is a better squad level than say Iraola or Nuno. Let\u2019s not forget Gil, Bisouma, Ndombele, Richardlison, Le Celso.. that\u2019s like \u00a3200m gone.<\/p>\n

Levy rather shockingly has invested more into Tottenham than Kroenke has into Arsenal in the last 4 years. So maybe Levy should not be accused of not investing, because he has\u2026. Maybe not at Todd or the Manchester Clubs level.. but they are only beneath those three in terms of squad investment in the last 4 years\u2026and 14th place after that level of investment cannot be the owner\u2019s fault. Just saying\u2026
\nKufre, Nigeria<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sanchez to kill off Maresca?<\/strong>
\nRobert Sanchez is absurdly tall, 1.97M yet appears to have the goalkeeping stature presence of an Oompa Loopa.<\/p>\n

Now altitude here is highly pertinent as the Sanchez \u2018hill\u2019 is the one that Marseca seems to be willing to die on.<\/p>\n

Chelsea were crap all round on Saturday but there is no doubt that the fans are done with Sanchez and Maresca\u2019s seemingly blind faith in his poor man\u2019s David James is going to go down increasingly poorly.<\/p>\n

Roman always demanded Champions League as a minimum and there\u2019s no reason that Clearlake will feel any differently given their investment.<\/p>\n

Possibly Roger Sanchez would be a better choice in goal, the fans could at least boogie.
\nSteven McBain, Singapore<\/strong><\/p>\n

READ: Man City debutant joins clumsy and bullied Chelsea players in Premier League Worst XI<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

What a boring season this is\u2026<\/strong>
\nAnybody else pining for the days of proper football? A time when players knew what they were doing and adapted to what was in front of them? A time when nearly every team had a bit of flair and excitement?<\/p>\n

Guardiola came along with his very effective tiki taka shite and instead of finding a way of defeating it, every other manager decided they\u2019d give it a go and bore us to death with system-based football that\u2019s akin to watching a Playstation advert. Goodbye entertaining football, hello to rigid, formulaic boreball.<\/p>\n

The quality of football on offer this season has been dreadful. None of the so called \u2018big clubs\u2019 have shown up, none of the \u2018best of the rest\u2019 have moved forward, and no one has managed to string a few wins together apart from Liverpool, who, let\u2019s be honest, in any other season wouldn\u2019t have come anywhere near top of the league with the football they\u2019ve been playing.<\/p>\n

Where once we had innovative managers who could adapt and overcome, we\u2019re swamped with rigid, myopic one trick ponies who would rather watch their teams lose than God forbid they change their precious \u2018philosophy\u2019.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s dull, it\u2019s boring, and it\u2019s sucked the life out of the prem. Definitely a season to forget.
\nKen (not that one), Brentford<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Randy Lanz
Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

People get death threats all the time on social media so why is Michael Oliver special? It\u2019s one take among many as Arsenal \u2018crybabies\u2019 continue to whine. Send your thoughts on all subjects to th*******<\/span>@*********<\/span>65.com<\/span> Not all Arsenal fans The \u201cholier than thou\u201d tone of your article \u00a0is just astonishing \u2013 as if Football365 is<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":825687,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24361,22524],"tags":[141562,7531],"class_list":{"0":"post-825686","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-faux","8":"category-arsenal","9":"tag-faux","10":"tag-arsenal"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/825686","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=825686"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/825686\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/825687"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=825686"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=825686"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=825686"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}