@spurs // In the wake of news that Arteta has complained to PGMOL that Saka is being unfairly targeted by opposition players, BBC Football Daily asks, “Are players being protected enough?”
A salient discussion given how Spurs are by far the most fouled team in the league and in light of the damage sustained to Maddison's ankles and Bentancur's brutal injuries (among others).
@hallenbeck@spurs
Persistent infringement doesn't seem to be called enough in the EPL. I know it's always been a physical league, but it's also known for it's spectacle. Letting talented attackers get fouled repeatedly definitely hurts that.
Saka would probably benefit from tighter refereeing. Maddison definitely would.
@AdamDavis@spurs It's the uneven application of the rules I find frustrating. I don't think individual players should get special treatment, but referees shouldn't let fouls go because it might interfere with the "flow" of the game. The longer term consequences in the form of injured players is far worse imo.
@spurs Arteta sure is getting a reputation as being an entitled helicopter parent of a manager.
I have some sympathy given how fouled Spurs are, but Arteta should be working with other clubs if he sees this as a problem, not running off to the "headmaster" expecting special treatment.
Arsenal are the 8th most fouled team and I don't see Saka out with serious prolonged injuries, so I'm not sure why he feels to need to complain so loudly. If anything, Arteta is at fault for overplaying Saka.
@hallenbeck@spurs this makes me wonder, do officials use or even have data on stuff like this? It seems like officials, just like clubs, should probably be going into games with game plans informed by scouting and data analysis.
@brndnpink@spurs Interesting point. I would have thought that's exactwhat they do and would assume they have access to ample data... But wouldn't be surprised if none of this happens. The mic'd up show is a step in the right direction for post analysis, but, yeah, not sure if any pre-analysis goes on.
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