Klinsmann Vindicated by Lehmann Brilliance

By the time Arsenal had wrapped up their trip to next month’s Champions League final (their first ever) in Paris, I’m sure you’d forgotten all about what their prolific keeper Jens Lehmann had done before brilliantly stopping Juan Roman Riquelme’s penatly kick in the 90th minute at El Madrigal. Sure, Arsenal supporters the world over will never forget how he stared down the Argentine superstar before diving to his left to block the striker’s half-hearted attempt, but Germany’s #1 netminder made a couple of key saves earlier in the match to preserve his side’s slim 1-nil advantage until the bitter end.

In managing to keep the ball out of the back of the net for yet another ninety minutes (except for a goal correctly called back for offside), Lehmann kept his Champions League record of scoreless minutes alive – now more than ten full matches and in excess of nine hundred minutes. One has to wonder if this is a record that will ever be broken.

Of course, Lehmann will have to be at his very best in the final whichever team he should face. Odds-on-favorite Barcelona have some potent weapons at their disposal, including of course World Footballer of the Year Ronaldinho. Alongside him would most likely be African Footballer of the Year Samuel Eto’o. And Barca’s supporting cast isn’t too shabby either.

Milan’s dynamic Andriy Shevchenko, who will soon be leading his team to their first-ever World Cup, would also test Lehmann…assuming of course Berlusconi’s boys can win by a two-goal, which is highly unlikely. And since his Italian mate Pippo Inzaghi is in top form, the duo would prove to be quite formidable to the Arsenal defense.

But the Catalans should come out on top and ultimately take Europe’s top prize. But the way Lehmann’s playing, you certainly can’t count Arsenal out. And if Henry’s on his game in his hometown next month, then it could be a historic victory for the Gunners.

Lastly, I’d be remiss if I didn’t comment on the performance of one of the world’s top referees – Russia’s Valentin Ivanov; someone you’re likely to see much more of in Germany this summer. Did he get the call right when Arsenal’s young French defender Gael Clichy bumped into Villarreal’s Jose Mari? The same striker who Gilberto Silva scythed down INSIDE the box last game (and unjustly was not awarded a penalty) before eventually departing the match due to an injury from that play.

Well, although some would argue that Ivanov’s call for a penalty on this occasion was harsh, I would disagree. For it was Clichy’s challenge that was both clumsy and foolish. Was it a foul? Yes. The fact that it wasn’t a particularly violent or reckless foul doesn’t make it any less of a foul. For it was unfair contact that definitely caused the well-known diver Mari to fall to the ground, even if he did perhaps aid the referee in his decision.

The bottom line is that Clichy did not play the ball. It was a pointless challenge, really, as Jose Mari had his back to the goal at the time. And I applaud Ivanov for having the balls to make the call, especially since it was in the dying moments of the game.

I’m reminded of a similar call I made a few weeks ago in a far less important game, but important to the players nonetheless. After I blew my whistle for a PK, the coach on the losing end of that decision complained vehemently to me that a penalty should only be for a really harsh foul. And maybe that’s what some people think…but they’re wrong.

A foul’s a foul. Commit one inside the penalty box and the consequences are simply much worse. A defender, therefore, must be smarter about the way he or she plays inside the eighteen-yard box. One wrong move could mean the difference betweeen playing for Europe’s top prize and watching it from home. Fortunately for Arsenal, Jens Lehmann was there to save the day on this occasion.

And those are today’s thoughts from the middle.

Until next time…

peace,
ac