Sidney Sladen
Marouane Fellaini has hit out at Jamie Carragher’s claims last year about the Belgian elbowing Robert Huth.
Sky Sports Pundit and Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher last year wrote that he “hoped we don’t see his elbows in England again” following the Manchester United midfielder’s ban for elbowing Leicester City’s Robert Huth.
Though Carragher has since clarified his comments, insisting he hoped the Fellaini moved on to another Premier League club rather than out of the country, Fellaini, after all these months, has responded by questioning Carragher’s way of defending during his playing days.
Fellaini told Sport/Foot magazine: “If I am violent and aggressive, what was Carragher? He is the champion of blah-blah and the world champion of breaking legs. If you type his name into YouTube you’ll only see him tackling.”
The headline made its way on to Carragher’s Twitter timeline on Thursday afternoon, but the former England defender was unruffled by Fellaini’s comments.
“Just Man United legs!” was Carragher’s response.
Just Man United legs! https://t.co/GI4LvljkwV
— Jamie Carragher (@Carra23) March 9, 2017
Speaking in his Daily Mail column about the incident, Carragher, who retired in 2013 after 737 appearances for the Reds, was hugely critical of the Belgium international.
He said: “Three games is not a sentence that will prove a deterrent to Fellaini. He is a repeat offender and it has gone beyond the point now where people can attempt to defend him by saying he is a tall lad who is using his arms for leverage. Look at the incident with Huth again: Fellaini takes a glance around and sees where Huth is before swinging. Yes, he may have been provoked but the Belgium international knew what he was doing. Had he connected firmly, the Leicester defender could have been left with a broken cheek or jaw.”
Fellaini is known for his hot head while on the pitch and it isn’t anything new to watch Fellaini engage himself in physical battles. But sometimes, things do get beyond control and it is important to keep a check on players’ behaviours and ensure that any particular player doesn’t keep playing the game in a dirty way.
Carragher during his playing days was really rough and often lost his cool on the pitch. It is ironical that Jamie is commenting about Fellaini’s style of play.
Though he has retired, it is important to make sure he uses the right pair of words to describe the incident and not speak like a guy who has always been a nice player on the pitch.
It is understandable that Fellaini got agitated by Carra’s comments and his response was only natural.
