OT - Chelsea Soccer's Eden Hazard kicks ball boy

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January 24th, 2013 at 12:01 AM
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Blazefire
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Joined: 04/17/2009
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OT - Chelsea Soccer's Eden Hazard kicks ball boy

I know this is pretty OT, but I thought we might all enjoy a little debate about it. If you haven't seen this yet, take a watch below:

In the above video, Chelsea star Eden Hazard decides that the proper response to a kid's fumbling (gamesmanship? Does it really matter?), is to give him a swift kick in the ribs. I thought I would check in to see what you all think about this. A few points for discussion:

1 - How do european soccer fans' responses to this compare to US sports fans' responses to players on field activities? I notice a lot of commenters beneath that video are berating the boy for falling on the ball, basically defending Hazard's kick.

2 - In that vein, what was the boy doing there? Some say he was trying to kill time to hasten the end of the game, towards whatever ends. Others say Hazard pushed him over and he was just discombobulated on top of the ball after he fell.

3 - Is a red card enough for this kind of behavior? The boy was not a player in the game nor a part of either team. Whether you think the boy was simply clumsy or intentionally trying to mess with time in the game, do you think a red card handles it, or should there be something more severe?

4 - How does this differ from, say, a streaker trying to get into the game, and getting clocked by a linebacker or something? When those guys get hit, do you feel they deserve it?

"This is the EMU game, not the emo game."
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January 24th, 2013 at 12:07 AM | Well I have thought about it since seeing it... (Score:2 Normal)
Michiganguy19
Joined: 07/05/2008
MGoPoints: 719

Certainly the kid doesn't deserve to get "kicked", though I am skeptical of how much he was "kicked"... that said. He tried to stall the game up, by doing so he put himself in the action... That Cal trombone player took one in the kisser because he wandered onto the field. If this kid didn't lay on the ball, we wouldn't be having this discussion. From what I have read both sides have apologized and they met in the locker room afterwards as well.

'Cause I Bleed Blue...

January 24th, 2013 at 3:18 AM | for the record, it was a Stanford trombone player... (Score:2)
tedheadfred
Joined: 08/07/2009
MGoPoints: 27

and he deserved it... :)

 

 

January 24th, 2013 at 12:15 AM | F that. That dude needs an (Score:0 Overrated)
January 24th, 2013 at 12:22 AM | This (Score:4 Normal)
LSA Aught One
Joined: 08/24/2011
MGoPoints: 854

This is why I love hockey. That asshole would still be bleeding if he had done this during a hockey game.

January 24th, 2013 at 12:57 AM | My first thought was... (Score:2 Normal)
justingoblue
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Joined: 11/16/2010
MGoPoints: 10854

Match Penalty, but you're almost certainly right about this as well. Also, yes Blazefire; I don't know if this is my hockey background or what, but all sports should have a rule equivalent to a match penalty for attempt to injure (Gholston helmet twist, anyone?) or misconduct against officials, fans and deliberate disruptions to the game from a coach*:

  • Significant in-game disadvantage (major penalty in hockey [5mins of penalty kill])
  • No communication with team until review by league administration (max 30 days)
  • Maximum penalty is a lifetime ban, minimum is time served (major + suspension day[s])

*Coaches are handled differently (due to the difference in infraction), but the gist is the same in that you do not want this penalty, at all.

Go Blue!

January 24th, 2013 at 12:16 AM | Further evidence shows that (Score:5 Normal)
Shaqsquatch
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Joined: 04/08/2009
MGoPoints: 3301

Further evidence shows that the kid was being a little shit, but that still doesn't justify kicking him:

January 24th, 2013 at 12:45 AM | Ehh (Score:0 Overrated)
January 24th, 2013 at 1:22 AM | Kid wasn't supposed to be on field (Score:1)
koolaid
Joined: 10/31/2009
MGoPoints: 227

Should not have been 'kicked' but definitely completely stalling. If he was just 'clumsy' then he should be fired because he is not capable of doing the easiest job ever.

January 24th, 2013 at 12:10 PM | From his employer's (Score:3 Normal)
andrewG
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Joined: 10/20/2010
MGoPoints: 970

From his employer's perspective, he was doing an excellent job of helping tick a few extra seconds off the clock to secure the win.

January 24th, 2013 at 9:31 AM | What is not debateable, is (Score:5 Normal)
MGoBender
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Joined: 03/26/2010
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What is not debateable, is that the soccer douche canoe should've been fucking mauled by everyone. Even if I was on his team I would've knocked him out and probably rearranged his face while he was KO'd.

No, you wouldn't have, Internet tough guy.

CoE Class of 2007

January 24th, 2013 at 6:47 PM | Ok (Score:2)
Drkboarder
Joined: 01/24/2010
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Don't throw stones in glass houses, Internet Overlord.

January 24th, 2013 at 4:22 PM | Not to excuse the kick.... (Score:1)
Blue in Yarmouth
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MGoPoints: 2327

I certainly think the red card was warranted, but after watching the replay a couple of times I was of the impression the kick was directed at the ball, not the kid. It looked to me that he tried to kick the ball out from under the kid and missed. It was also said following the game that the kid was milking it and he admitted he was barely touched.

Again, I am not trying to excuse Hazard (I hate Chelsea and anything bad that happens to them is good in my books), but it looked like it wasn't exactly an attempt to injure the kid, just release the ball. 

January 24th, 2013 at 12:18 AM | Ouch! (Score:2 Normal)
Michiganmad
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Joined: 01/17/2012
MGoPoints: 64

Hazard is one mean guy. Feel sorry for the kid. No matter if the kid was stalling you don't kick him to get the ball. Why they have referees on the field.

Coach Hoke says "Hi"!

January 24th, 2013 at 12:21 AM | That kid had no business (Score:5 Normal)
Gameboy
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That kid had no business being on the pitch. If the ball is not over the sign, you let the players get it. PERIOD. The kid put himself in the game for no reason and made it worse by diving over the ball. I have no sympathy for that kid.

January 24th, 2013 at 12:42 AM | The kid was a ball boy so it (Score:0 Overrated)
January 24th, 2013 at 1:06 AM | You missed the point of his (Score:5 Normal)
ak47
Joined: 05/05/2011
MGoPoints: 595

You missed the point of his comment.  In the video you can see boards around the field, usually when a ball bounce off the boards the players just grab it.  Also the kid is cleary intentionally stalling and bragged about it on his twitter.  The kid is a little shit, doesn't mean what hazard did was smart and he will get punished but I don't feel bad for the kid either.

January 24th, 2013 at 1:19 AM | Watched the video from other angle (Score:1)
koolaid
Joined: 10/31/2009
MGoPoints: 227

Kick was unnecessary, but ball boy should be fired. Not gamesmanship. That is cheating and messing with the game.

January 24th, 2013 at 2:05 AM | Yeah, I guess I did.  My (Score:2)
Chester Cheetah
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Yeah, I guess I did.  My apologies.  The kid was certainly being a little shit but obviously it doesn't excuse Hazard for doing that.

It ain't easy being cheesy

January 24th, 2013 at 1:06 AM | Are you some kind of damn (Score:-1 Flamebait)
January 24th, 2013 at 12:22 AM | He's trying to kick the ball out from under (Score:5 Normal)
Mitch Again
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Joined: 08/20/2010
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the kid. It looks pretty clear to me.

Frank: A little housewarming gift. To new beginnings.

Me: I actually gave this to you for your wedding.

Frank: This model?

Me: This exact one

January 24th, 2013 at 12:30 AM | I agree. It looks like he (Score:5 Normal)
LongLiveBo
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MGoPoints: 1080

I agree. It looks like he tries to kick the ball out from under him and the kid goes soccer Oscar and starts looking for a stretcher.

The Team, The Team, The Team.

January 24th, 2013 at 12:45 AM | I personally don't really (Score:2 Normal)
BigOrangeWolverine
Joined: 03/05/2012
MGoPoints: 14

I personally don't really think it matters whether he was trying to kick the kid or kick the ball. In my own eyes, they're pretty much a single unit at that point in time. Whether his intentions were to kick the boy or kick the ball, either way, Hazard must know that some "jarring force", if you will, will be levied on the boy.

 

Now, do I think the kid sold it like a boss? Of course. I don't think that is the point though. Like another poster said, there are officials to manage the play of the game, including tallying how much time has been wasted in order to add it back on in stoppage time. Hazard was completely in the wrong in kicking period, whether it was directed at the boy or the ball. Just my two cents.

January 24th, 2013 at 1:03 AM | I am not saying that I don't (Score:4 Normal)
LongLiveBo
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I am not saying that I don't think what he did was wrong just that he didn't actually kick the kid.

The Team, The Team, The Team.

January 24th, 2013 at 5:42 PM | I'll say that: (Score:1)
Mustachioed Gen...
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Joined: 05/25/2009
MGoPoints: 2746

There was nothing wrong with what he did.

 

Does it tickle? Only slightly, only slightly.

I upvote any post by BlockM. And Magnus.

January 24th, 2013 at 1:01 AM | Ok (Score:2)
FGB
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Joined: 09/24/2009
MGoPoints: 1731

Ok, so he's "trying" to kick the ball out from under the ballboy.  So what.

Hazard clearly makes contact with the ballboy, so his motive doesn't really matter (other than it might mean he's suspended for a month instead 3 months).

And this crap about the "ballboy deserves it cuz he got involved in the game" makes no sense.  Let's say it wasn't a ballboy, let's say it was a Swansea player doing the exact same timewasting (which happens all the time in various forms), and Hazard kicked him.  He'd still deservedly get a red card and be branded an asshole, just like now.

 

January 24th, 2013 at 1:15 AM | At least a player is supposed (Score:2)
Gameboy
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MGoPoints: 494

At least a player is supposed to be on the pitch. This kid was an intruder. It would be more like a football player clotheslining a streaker on the field. Would the player be chastised for it? Yes. Would I feel bad for the streaker? No.

January 24th, 2013 at 1:23 AM | Yep (Score:2)
FGB
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MGoPoints: 1731

Yep, a streaker, with all his clothes on, standing on the sideline and not even close to the field, with an ID badge allowing him to stand there, who is expressly permitted to interact with the football.

But otherwise, just like that.

It doesn't have to be analogized with any other situation.  He's a ballboy who was timewasting and Hazard kicked him. 

 

 

January 24th, 2013 at 12:14 PM | A streaker may be allowed on (Score:2)
Gameboy
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A streaker may be allowed on the field on other times, just not during the game. A ballboy may go and get the ball when it is far away from the pitch, just not when it bounching back to the pitch and there is already a player nearby. I have no sympathy for people who put themselves in a situation they should not have been and get hurt.

January 24th, 2013 at 12:23 AM | I feel like they should (Score:5 Normal)
rockediny
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Joined: 08/14/2010
MGoPoints: 1394

I feel like they should suspend both of them, Hazard and the ballboy. You clearly can see him cover the ball with his hands when he falls on it. I don't believe for a second that he just stumbled on top of that ball.

"There will be blood on the field and it won't be mine." -KK

January 24th, 2013 at 12:26 AM | The play will be reviewed and (Score:1)
gutnedawg
Joined: 12/18/2010
MGoPoints: 359

The play will be reviewed and a subsequent match ban will take place. Probably more than 3 games.

/°>

 

January 24th, 2013 at 12:28 AM | Ban Hazard for a couple of (Score:1)
DeadMan
Joined: 02/05/2009
MGoPoints: 171

Ban Hazard for a couple of months. You simply cannot do that to a fan, ball boy, ref, etc. The ref would have been adding on time and woud have been well within his rights to kick the ball boy off the field. That is some shit you'd see from a pair of 6 year olds.

 

An interesting note, and one that I don't think excuses Hazard in the least, but the ball boy is only 4 years younger than him.

January 24th, 2013 at 12:30 AM | Where is Herm with a comment (Score:2)
NFG
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Where is Herm with a comment on youths not respecting soccer authority ???

January 24th, 2013 at 12:40 AM | For reference (Score:2 Normal)
blueinIN
Joined: 01/06/2013
MGoPoints: 18

In 1994 Eric Cantona of Manchester United kicked a fan (some say after being provoked) and was banned for 4 months.

Whatever the ball boy may be doing, for Hazard to be taking it out on a young lad when the result is not going his way is certainly not acceptable.

January 24th, 2013 at 12:52 AM | Yea but they will argue that (Score:2 Normal)
gutnedawg
Joined: 12/18/2010
MGoPoints: 359

Yea but they will argue that Hazard kicked the ball and not the kid. I'd be surprised if he's hit with that long of a ban.

/°>

 

January 24th, 2013 at 1:29 AM | Hazard admits he kicked him (Score:2)
FGB
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MGoPoints: 1731

Hazard's apology was "The boy put his whole body on to the ball and I was trying to kick the ball and not the boy. The boy came into our changing room and we had a quick chat. I apologised to the boy, he apologised as well and it’s over. Sorry"

He says he wasn't trying to kick the ballboy, but that phrasing clearly says he did kick him, albeit unintentionally.

January 24th, 2013 at 7:30 PM | Do you really think the (Score:1)
The Bugle
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Joined: 10/22/2009
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Do you really think the events are comparable? Let me show you a picture of Cantona...

IMO Hazard deserved the red and the mandatory 3 game suspension that goes along with it.  But that is where the punishment should end.

January 24th, 2013 at 12:57 AM | you don't kick anyone, even a smartass kid. (Score:2 Normal)
HELLE
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Joined: 07/26/2011
MGoPoints: 636

I hope they both learn that their are consequences to every action. I'm sure all of us need a kick to the ribs at some point in our lives. Hazard seems like an ass and the kid will be fine. Life lessons are great.

Go Blue!

January 24th, 2013 at 1:05 AM | If you decide to step into (Score:4 Normal)
mgovideo
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If you decide to step into the tigers' cage, don't cry when you get bit kid.

@mgovideo

January 24th, 2013 at 12:58 AM | The analogy that comes to (Score:2)
ArbitraryUserName
Joined: 03/16/2011
MGoPoints: 39

The analogy that comes to mind (and I'm not much of a sports guy), is Ron Artest, whose provocation was more than anything the ballboy did here.

So assuming Hazard was not just trying to poke the ball free, then no, a red card doesn't seem on par with what happens in one case in the US.

January 24th, 2013 at 1:14 AM | Dennis Rodman (Score:4 Normal)
Well...Well...Well
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Reminded me more of Dennis Rodman kicking a camera guy after he went down on the sideline.

January 24th, 2013 at 12:58 AM | Pretty much sums it up (Score:3 Normal)
Gobgoblue
Joined: 07/07/2012
MGoPoints: 771

When Lampard and Hazard are talking to the ref, the ref goes (in disbelief) "Did you kick him???"  
Hazard says some sort of his side of the story, but without another word the ref pulls out the red card and motions him off the pitch.  

I love Greg Mattison

January 24th, 2013 at 1:09 AM | He could very well lose his (Score:1)
turtleboy
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MGoPoints: 3207

He could very well lose his place on the national team, or banned for a spell of future matches. I know the then Scottish Captain Barry Ferguson was banned from further selection at all for making moderately lewd gestures during a match. It clearly looks like he tried to clear the ball from under the kid, but it was still a silly thing to do. I'm sure the kid was fine, it wasn't much of a kick, but he should definitely be disciplined because of it.

How many times have you been on the freeway and had someone fly by you at 100 mph then end up 2 cars ahead of you at the off ramp? What's the point? -Mark Harmon

January 24th, 2013 at 1:59 AM | Not likely (Score:2)
PurpleStuff
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Joined: 04/21/2009
MGoPoints: 10412

Ferguson (and Allan McGregor) were held out of a qualifier against Iceland for violating curfew and getting shitfaced after a qualifier earlier in the week against Holland.  They then spent the game doing the equivalent of giving the finger (inverted "V" hand gesture) to the crowd throughout the game as they sat on the bench.  Repeated asshole behavior even after punishments were dished out got them in trouble, not a single "heat of the moment" lapse in judgment.  And Hazard hasn't been a guaranteed selection in the Belgian side even when on his best behavior (they have loads of talent and the manager has been pretty reluctant to put up with even the mild, non-violent prima donna antics of Eden).

Their "lifetime ban" was so strong that McGregor is and has been Scotland's clear #1 goalkeeper (poor Craig Gordon) for the last few years and Ferguson was welcomed back into the squad within a year, only to turn down the invitation from recently fired manager Craig Levein.

Luckily this is all behind us as Wee Gordon Strachan prepares to invade Wembley this summer.  If only we can get Darren Fletcher to stop going for burritos in Manchester with Chicharito things are looking good.

Alba gu brath!

It is spelled HOKEAMANIA.  Our coach is an ass-kicking American citizen, not one of the Beatles, for Christ's sake!

January 24th, 2013 at 1:04 AM | What a piece of crap that (Score:-1 Flamebait)
January 24th, 2013 at 1:07 AM | Hazard is an idiot (Score:4 Insightful)
Knight
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Joined: 09/16/2010
MGoPoints: 588

The ball boys are told to move slowly when their team is winning and move quickly if their team is down late in the match. This type of scenario happens often and the players yell for the ball and if they do not receive it quick enough complain to the ref and let him handle it. Hazard's actions were completely stupid. Even though he was trying to kick the ball he deserves a decent sized suspension, perhaps a month long ban.

In this video the player has reason to get mad at the ball boy but just lets it go and continues to play:

 

January 24th, 2013 at 1:09 AM | I'd be mad too, if the ball (Score:2)
ArbitraryUserName
Joined: 03/16/2011
MGoPoints: 39

I'd be mad too, if the ball boy threw me a football when I wanted a soccer ball!

January 24th, 2013 at 1:14 AM | How can people say he kicked (Score:-1 Flamebait)
January 24th, 2013 at 1:29 AM | I can say he kicked the ball (Score:5 Normal)
LongLiveBo
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MGoPoints: 1080

I can say he kicked the ball because he kicked the ball.

The Team, The Team, The Team.

January 24th, 2013 at 1:35 AM | I suggest you have your eyes (Score:-1 Trolling)
January 24th, 2013 at 1:51 AM | Watch the angle I posted below (Score:3 Normal)
Jon06
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MGoPoints: 2082

Pretty sure that's ball.

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