Nicolas Pepe was sent off for a head butt on Ezgjan Alioski and the Ivorian has received support from Troy Deeney.
The Watford striker claims that the touch was simply not enough for the north Macedonian to go to ground the way that he did.
Pepe will have to serve some kind of suspension now, but Deeney doesn’t believe that what he did warrants the fall from Alioski.
He claimed that it was once embarrassing to go down that way, but things seem to have changed and it isn’t that embarrassing anymore.
He also slammed people who defend behaviour like that and compares it to defending players who dive to earn spot-kicks.
He added that if he was the one who went down that easily, he would have gotten some stick from his mates for falling that easily.
“We’re probably from a generation that’s a bit different,” said Deeney on TalkSport as quoted by The Independent.
“The embarrassment of going down like that is not necessarily the same any more. We’re all saying ‘he did get touched so he’s gone down’ – it’s kind of what we’re doing with the diving now, defending them. Whereas, me personally, if I would have got brushed with a head like that and went down, my mates would be hammering me for the next six months. It would be anything, like a gust of wind – ‘oh, watch Troy, he’s going to fall’.”
Pepe has struggled to start games for Arsenal this season and now that he has been handed a chance to start, he has messed things up for himself.
And the bafta goes to……It was pathetic the way he went down! Every week we see theatrics from grown men, it gets worse… I agree with Deeney – they should be hammered by their teammates, but no, they’ll all receive a pat on the back for doing their job… pathetic!
Stuff like this always takes me back to Rivaldo at the world cup!!! Laughable!
I remember that Rivaldo incident. It was at the corner flag, and I think he got hit in the chest with the ball, and went down holding his face! Embarrassing!
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Sue, he did get a pat from our very own Xhaka at the match. Some of Our players are too soft and gentle. Pathetic!!!
How right you are, Mobella, not only a pat, but a hug!! 😳
Of course I’m sure Xhaka was only checking out how he was.. considering how he went to ground -surely he must’ve been concussed from such a ferocious head-butt 😂
Man Mobella! You are so right. Our players are so soft it gets me frustrated. There’s a kind of crazy that is okay for sports. the kind that makes you want to always win, never take crap from anyone. Our players just act like they are happy to be on the pitch, play whatever and go home. come on! Where’s the solidarity, the pride in the badge? Ask my mates, i’m no advocate for violence. I am not asking for violence on the pitch. i just want some steel and no nonsense mannerisms echoed around the squad. A team cannot be great without the occasional pyscho, gentle giant, and mad man.
So thanks Tiernney, your anger was my highpoint of the game!
Why should Pepe have headbutted him knowing that the premier league has VAR that can assist referees in making decisions lately?
WHY? Easy! Because Pepe is thick!
There should be a PFA Players’ Actor of the Year award to honour the greats in play-acting
Agreed it was play acting by the Leeds player, but Pepe should not have head butted him in the first place. it is completely unacceptable. Anyway, since Pepe has apologised, the chapter seems to have been closed as far as MA is concerned, but Pepe has to be careful in the future not to repeat such acts.
Pepe’s red was to be expected for the touching of heads (that was not a head but). But should Alioski not have gotten a yellow for his dive?