If only they had player poker (3) - David Beckham
I'm a great fan of conspiracy theories. As long as they're not completely stupid, like "the moon landings were faked" - that kind of thing just gives conspiracy theories a bad name ! So I was joking at lunch yesterday "Beckham probably got booked on purpose so he could get his suspension out of the way by missing a trip to Azerbaijan".
Amazingly though today, Beckham admits, actually announces, that that's exactly what he did. Knowing he was injured and about to leave the field, he deliberately incurred a yellow card so as to be suspended for a game he would miss anyway, and wipe the slate clean of his previous booking. Clever maybe, but certainly the kind of cynical exploitation of rules that I have no respect for. But why oh why oh why is he telling everyone about it ?
The poker parallel is so obvious that I'm not sure I should explain it at all. Oh go on then. It's like making a clever bluff and then showing your hand afterwards. Look everyone, aren't I clever. Well no, because now you can't do it again. Beckham's ego has driven him to explain his actions because he doesn't like to be thought of as stupid (that being the case maybe he should learn to string together 10 words in a row without saying "y'know" but I digress). FIFA can't let this go. It's hard to make a rule for dealing with this situation, but at the end of the day, rules are for the abeyance of fools and the guidance of wise men. They should just say "We're not having this, you're banned for the next game as well". They'll get a ton of stick off the FA and the press, but I'd be right behind them [FIFA]. Beckham basically cheated the other teams in the group, and could well have injured an innocent opponent * while he was about it. Throw the book at him. Or more precisely, throw the book away and clip him round the ear.
* Alright it was Ben Thatcher. Perhaps, as the Sex Pistols once said, No One Is Innocent
PS I'm tempted to change my recommendation for tomorrow's football after seeing Azerbaijan at 27 on Betfair. 26-1 against the home team, in a game of football ! They're not that bad. Nowhere near. And don't forget Liechtenstein managed to draw 2-2 with Portugal at the weekend. I know that's not a win, but a few quid with a view to laying it back in the hope that the home team can nick the first goal or keep it level till say half-time might be in order.
Amazingly though today, Beckham admits, actually announces, that that's exactly what he did. Knowing he was injured and about to leave the field, he deliberately incurred a yellow card so as to be suspended for a game he would miss anyway, and wipe the slate clean of his previous booking. Clever maybe, but certainly the kind of cynical exploitation of rules that I have no respect for. But why oh why oh why is he telling everyone about it ?
The poker parallel is so obvious that I'm not sure I should explain it at all. Oh go on then. It's like making a clever bluff and then showing your hand afterwards. Look everyone, aren't I clever. Well no, because now you can't do it again. Beckham's ego has driven him to explain his actions because he doesn't like to be thought of as stupid (that being the case maybe he should learn to string together 10 words in a row without saying "y'know" but I digress). FIFA can't let this go. It's hard to make a rule for dealing with this situation, but at the end of the day, rules are for the abeyance of fools and the guidance of wise men. They should just say "We're not having this, you're banned for the next game as well". They'll get a ton of stick off the FA and the press, but I'd be right behind them [FIFA]. Beckham basically cheated the other teams in the group, and could well have injured an innocent opponent * while he was about it. Throw the book at him. Or more precisely, throw the book away and clip him round the ear.
* Alright it was Ben Thatcher. Perhaps, as the Sex Pistols once said, No One Is Innocent
PS I'm tempted to change my recommendation for tomorrow's football after seeing Azerbaijan at 27 on Betfair. 26-1 against the home team, in a game of football ! They're not that bad. Nowhere near. And don't forget Liechtenstein managed to draw 2-2 with Portugal at the weekend. I know that's not a win, but a few quid with a view to laying it back in the hope that the home team can nick the first goal or keep it level till say half-time might be in order.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home