Of course, there have been horrific injuries in previous seasons - Eduardo and Aaron Ramsey spring to mind from previous seasons - but for this many injuries to be racked up in only two months of play is something that needs to be looked at.
There have been views and opinions that certain teams have been opting for these type of tactics against the teams which could out-play them on the field, but not based on facts, just purely opinions. However, it's quite easy to see how these type of opinions can be crafted in the minds of opposing fans.
[caption id="attachment_172" align="aligncenter" width="402" caption="Out of action: Zamora makes up part of the list of casualties in the Premier League this season."]
[/caption]One typical example is Wolves and mainly their captain; Karl Henry. Henry has been in the limelight for the wrong reasons recently. Initially for turning the tables on Newcastle bad boy Joey Barton, hounding him continually throughout the game and catching a few badly timed tackles on the Newcastle midfielder. This was almost considered ironic to some fans though, considering Barton's previous incidents and off-field behaviour (some of which is covered in another blog of ours, which can be found here).
However, the height of this media attention was reached a week later in Wolves' clash against Fulham. Henry was involved in a tackle on Fulham's Bobby Zamora that left him with a broken fibula, being put on the sidelines for 4 months. After reviewing the tackle, opinions were split. Henry did play the ball, but his trailing leg caught Zamora and led to the devastating injury to the striker. The injury was unfortunate news for the England camp too, with the 29-year old reaching the best form of his career and recently earning his first cap. Fingers crossed for Bobby that the injury doesn't affect this form too drastically.
[caption id="attachment_171" align="aligncenter" width="466" caption="Brutal: Henry's brutal tackle on Wigan's Jordi Gomez (Press Association)."]
[/caption]Fast forward to last week's game against Wigan. Wolves lost the game 2-0 but focus was yet again put onto Henry with a horrendous tackle on Wigan's Jordi Gomez, leading to a direct red card, after just 11 minutes. In the second half, poetic justice was served, with Gomez scoring a fantastic free-kick just after the hour mark to give Wigan the lead. Post-match, Henry admitted the tackle was bad and unnecessary, apologising to his Wolves team-mates for the tackle, in my opinion he knows inside that he needs to clean his act up.
Another player who has taken the media spotlight for the wrong reasons is Manchester City and Holland midfielder Nigel de Jong. Even before the season had started, de Jong was highlighted for his aggressive on field behaviour. The 2010 World Cup final featured 13 yellow cards, the most ever in a World Cup final, and 46 fouls in total. De Jong was involved in one of the more dangerous fouls. A high foot caught Xabi Alonso square in the chest, almost replicating the famous Cantona Crystal Palace "karate kick".
[caption id="attachment_174" align="aligncenter" width="460" caption="Dangerous: de Jong's high foot caught Alonso in a shocking World Cup final (Getty Images)."]
[/caption]However, we can't just spotlight de Jong from that game, a lot of the Dutch team implemented "dirty" tactics in the game and other questionable tactics throughout the competition, leading to the disapproval of Dutch legend Johan Cruyff. But de Jong was yet again brought to the public eye for his antics. Newcastle were at the brunt of the tackles yet again. This time new boy Hatem Ben Arfa felt the wrath of the Dutchman.
Only joining the North-East club on transfer deadline day, merely just over a month ago, Ben Arfa had outlined his desire to play for Newcastle and in the Premier League. It's devastating to see a young player with such a bright future, in form, having their career brought to a standstill due to a needless injury. The nature of the tackle was similar to that of Henry's on Zamora, a trailing leg doing most of the damage. De Jong did catch the ball but went through the player in the process, thus not earning a red card, or even a booking, for his efforts.
[caption id="attachment_175" align="aligncenter" width="466" caption="Hampered progress: Ben Arfa had to be stretchered off the field at the City of Manchester Stadium"]
[/caption]There have already been repercussions for de Jong's actions on the international stage too. Netherlands coach Bert van Marwijk has dropped the player from the next round of European Championship Qualification matches due to his actions on the field stating that the challenge was "wild and unnecessary". This decision seems to be a popular one with the Dutch fans too, a top newspaper in Holland conducted a poll to see what the fans thought of van Marwijk's decision - a whopping 90% backed the coach in his decision to leave de Jong out of the squad. However, fellow tough tackler and international team mate Mark van Bommel simply claimed "Nigel should not change his game, we need him as he is. But maybe he should occasionally go into a tackle slightly differently."
The Dutch midfielder even has further history of these rash tackles. Bolton and USA player Stuart Holden suffered a fractured fibula in the hands of a de Jong tackle in a friendly against the Netherlands around 7 months ago.
But what can be done about it? Considering that the Ben Arfa tackle didn't even cause referee Martin Atkinson to utter a blow of the whistle, I think it's the actions of managers which can make the difference. Van Marwijk has set a good, albeit late, example of this with his treatment of de Jong. Also, consider Joey Barton, a player who has certainly calmed down a lot in recent months. Some could attribute this to the punishment he's received for his off the field antics, but some could also attribute it to the advice, guidance and counselling of his manager Chris Hughton, coaches and people around him. Barton is always going to be a tough tackler, but it's clear to see there is a lot more sensibility to his game as of late.
Don't get me wrong, there will always be big crunching tackles, especially in England, but with the correct training and an emphasis on timing - injuries like these could be reduced. But this is a double edged sword, with career threatening tackles like these becoming more frequent, will players be using it to their advantage? The last thing we want constant diving or simulation for ninety minutes as there's enough of it in the game as it is. Only time will tell, hopefully not at the expense of any more in form, promising players.
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