Arsenal's player brutally tackled on the pitch

The story:

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said Martin Taylor should "never play football again" after the Birmingham captain's tackle broke Eduardo's leg.

Eduardo went down in the third minute of the Premier League encounter and Taylor was shown a straight red card.

"The tackle was horrendous and this guy should never play football again," Wenger told BBC Sport.

But Blues boss Alex McLeish responded: "Martin's not a dirty player. He's distraught over Eduardo's injury."

Interview: Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger
Interview: Birmingham boss Alex McLeish

Eduardo, 24, remained lying on the pitch for seven minutes as medical staff attended to him before he was stretchered off and taken to Selly Oak Hospital.


In slow motion these tackles look bad but he's not a malicious player - Eduardo was just too quick for him

McLeish on Taylor

Wenger hit out at the way he feels his team have been targeted by opponents.

"It goes with the idea that to stop Arsenal you have to kick Arsenal and that kind of thing was waiting to happen," he said.

"Many people have got away with too many bad tackles. We've escaped a few times but it's just not acceptable. If that is football it's better to stop it.

"The worst thing you hear after is that 'he's not the kind of guy who usually does that', but you need to only kill one person one time - it's enough."

McLeish, however, sprang to the defence of his player.

"I've seen the challenge and, yes, the studs land on Eduardo's ankle. In slow motion these tackles always look bad but he's not a malicious player - Eduardo was just too quick for him," he explained.

"The referee's done his job, it's a sending off, but Taylor's not a malicious player."


The minimum is his season is over and we are scared that it is much longer

Wenger on Eduardo

The seriousness of the injury was apparent as both sets of players and medical staff looked shocked while Eduardo was treated on the pitch.

The Brazilian-born striker now looks certain to miss out on Croatia's participation at Euro 2008 in June.

"It was a massive shock for the team. They've seen what kind of state he was in," Wenger added.

"He's a fantastic guy and to see him in such pain and the shape of his leg was very difficult for the players.

"We hope he comes back quickly but the minimum is his season is over and we are scared that it is much longer."

Wigan boss Steve Bruce, who signed Taylor from Blackburn when he was Blues boss in February 2004, said his former player would never intentionally hurt anyone.

"Martin Taylor is the biggest, gentlest man," said Bruce. "There will be nobody more upset and sickened than him, there is not a bad bone in his body.

"He would never, ever do anything malicious. He has mis-timed the tackle, and I've seen it. Some would say it is not even a yellow card."

Quite shocking. I was watching the match on TV and was shocked when it happened. Was it on purpose or not? I'd say maybe. He missed the ball and tackled Eduardo's foot. They didn't even play the replay thats how bad it looked from a close angle. His foot literally snapped at the ankle. His teammates were shocked too. They we're holding their heads and looking up at the sky. I got a feeling that they could not believe what they saw. Eduardo didn't deserve this. His season is ruined and he won't be able to represent Croatia on the European Cup in June. Not to mention that he is gonna be out of football for like a year.

The pictures are quite shocking, but If you want to see them here they are:

http://www.rtvslo.si/sport/modload.php? ... c_id=38138

Thats a Slovenian site, but it has some pics and a video of it. Just go down the page.

Your thoughts?

I can't describe this feeling I have right now in my gut after seeing the very last pic in that link.

I doubt a year is enough for him to repair-rehabilitate-condition his ankle to game shape. I'm guessing 2 years minimum.

They should really look at the game replays if it's intentional or not.
If it is, they should ban Taylor for life or at least 4 years if permanent banishment is harsh.
If it's not, they should still suspend him for at least a year or two.

I'm glad no one has posted the pics here. I still remember when I was browsing some thread here and caught the broken leg of Cisse before the WC

I saw the pics and yikes...it was pretty damn nasty and brutal. How does this injury compare to the Cisse one before the WC?

Cisse's one looks nastier, but this one is pretty harsh.

Holy crap, I just saw some pics, and it looks nasty.

Well he has gone into surgery during the night and there have been some rumors that it isn't as bad as it was first thought. Even if its true he is still gonna be out for 6 months. I have also looked at the videos of Cisse's and Larson's injury. They looked really bad and maybe even worse then Eduardo's, but we didn't actually see the instant replay footage of it.

I am now certain that Taylor didn't injure Eduardo on purpose. It was a missed tackle on the ball and the worst scenario happened.

didnt some of the doctors say he may struggle to walk in the future?

i dont think it was on purpose, he got him smack bang in the middle of the shin, thats a fair aim if he did mean it. but its a horrible injury

How about compared to Alan Smith's injury? In his case, people say after Smith got his injury, he was never quite the same player.

i dont think you could possibly come back from an injury like that the same player at all, shaun livingston will be the same when he comes back

Well, IIRC, Shaun's injury was at his knee. The knee bends, his injury was about his knee bending in a weird way. In this case, Eduardo's ankle is broken. In case you haven't seen the pics, it was like he was walking on his ankle. So I guess this is more serious than Livingston's injury.

i wasnt making a point about the injury itself, just being injured in a bad way and spending so much time out of the game can have a mental affect on a player, i just brought him up cause it was the first example to come to my head

Just accept you're wrong, Fitz.









They'll never be the same if they come back.

im wrong, i suck, ill go cry in my corner

Fitzy is right. Shaun Livingston will still be the same player when he comes back.
He spent so much time being injured that he's so used to it that there's no more mental aspect that can affect him.

Official statement from Arsenal.com is that it is predicted Eduardo will be running again in about 6 months, and will need around 9 months to fully recover. Official injury sustained is a fractured left fibula and dislocated ankle.

LINK

I just read somewhere that doctors considered amputating his leg at one point

There were lots of those rumors spreading around the internet. I've read myself that he will be on a wheelchair for life and didn't believe it. I came to a conclusion to trust only official and the big sports sites.