Chen Show Mao
BLUE IS THE COLOUR (AND YELLOW AND RED). Before the games kick off this weekend: two developments off the pitch made me happy for the future of Chelsea Football Club.
1. The striker Diego Costa was punished retrospectively for violent conduct that escaped sanction by the referee on the pitch. For me this question: Is all the provocative pushing, flailing, chest-bumping, mouthing-off and carrying-on that stays deliberately outside the bounds of bookable offence nevertheless a form of "cheating" (according to a teammate in a Freudian slip), which should be discouraged for the good of the game? I think Yes.
2. The first-team doctor Eva Carneiro, a pioneer woman in senior position, endured one last abuse--this time not from fans in the stands but a manager in the dugout, as she followed General Medical Council guidelines rather than his orders. Dr Carneiro's professional accomplishments to date in the face of undoubted obstacles and challenges are a credit to her and to Chelsea FC. Following the incident, she was swiftly demoted and publicly chastised with overtones of sexism (“Even if you are a ... doctor or secretary on the bench, you have to understand the game"). This week she was reportedly considering a law suit against the club for constructive dismissal, which would be a welcome "yellow card" in my view. When an organisation condones and enables the arbitrary exercise of unchecked authority by powerful men in high office, without due regard to the harm done to the work, lives and aspirations of others, it ought to be issued a warning.
Players and managers come and go -- even special ones. But the football club remains, along with its reputation for fair dealing and progressive practices, which matters ever so much 'CAUSE CHELSEA, CHELSEA IS YOUR NAME.
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Photographs: BPI/Rex Shutterstock; Getty Images
