Disastrous Derby Weekend

Sports, when reasonably practised, is a source of boundless joy; however, if carelessly handled, it can inflict considerable wounds that won't heal in decades.

Disaster In Indonesia
Football experienced one of the worst sporting tragedies in recent history as Arema supporters clashed with the police after watching their team lose at home to bitter rivals, Persebaya Surabaya, in the Indonesian Football League. Over 174 have been reportedly killed (most were trampled upon) with the death toll still expected to rise. When you consider something of this nature could've happened in France at last year's UEFA Champions League Final, it only serves to highlight the magnitude of job Football Associations are faced with to control crowds during football matches.

A packed stadium filled with joyous fans gives a tingling sensation; the one filled with rioting ones is like a closely guarded, well fenced war zone. No life is guaranteed. I hope other Football and League Associations, the French FA in particular, opponentsom this horrible happening and make sure it never repeats itself in another stadium. For most of last season, crowd trouble marred a lot of matches in France. I hope they wake up before they become the subject of another sporting disaster.

North London Derby
It wouldn't be a North London Derby without aggression, a Harry Kane goal, and a red card. Would it? Needless to say, this match delivered upon the hype. Four goals, one reckless tackle birthing a red card, fans sending despicable chants each other's ways - a classic derby. The only things missing were probably a faceoff between the managers ( I actually anticipated a menacing one between Conte and Arteta, it never happened), and a couple of scuffles while the game was on. The meltdown was relatively little compared to what we've gotten used to.

In the end, Arsenal ran out comfortable 3-1 winners. They mean business this season. With Liverpool, Chelsea and Man U failing to convince thus far, it's hard to see Arsenal missing out of the top 4 now. But, before making such a hasty conclusion, let's see how convincing they play against a struggling but dangerous Liverpool in the next game. In recent seasons, the North London Derby has been about the home team winning. So, this result isn't a surprise.

Manchester Derby
Well, I'm still short of words to describe this match. Expectedly, Man City won. What shocked me is how easily they achieved it. Four first half goals, two players bagging a hat trick. Man U were completely ripped apart. Every attacking move by City was dangerous. Man U was brutally exposed. Despite the shocking result, I don't really know who to blame for this. However, the coach is still the easy pick.

You are playing City, a team that picks you apart from the midfield. Even if Ten Hag was going to stick to his winning team, I expected him to drop one of his creative midfielders for either Fred or Casemiro once Gundogan was confirmed as a starter. There is no way anyone is winning a midfield battle against Gundogan, Silva and De Bruyne. Those three can do anything they want with the ball. Thus, putting players that can at least limit their impact on the ball is the only way to survive.

I hope Ten Hag learns from this chastening experience to never overestimate his players any longer. I've watched a dominant Ferguson's Man U play two DMFs in respect of their opponents. When Guardiola chose to go overly offensive against an incredibly tactical Tuchel, he was ruthlessly punished on the biggest stage, the Champions League final. Top managers tweak their teams to negate opposition threat. Sticking to the same team because they beat Southampton, or even Arsenal, is naive.

Image Source 1: www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-63105945.amp
Image Source 2: https://images.app.goo.gl/JLZ4F6z55wGh7ebm6
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