There is no doubt that what happens at the top of the professional game filters down to the grassroots level.
But I’m not sure I see the connection between the poor behavior of Premier League managers on the touchline and some of the shocking incidents that take place in amateur football.
I listened to Chris Sutton and Ian Ladyman’s latest It’s All Kicking Off podcast and the harrowing stories of referees being physically attacked and threatened. Jim White and I have heard similar stories on our talkSport show and it is clearly a serious problem that needs to be addressed. The question is: how?
Referees in the amateur game perform a public service in our national sport and undoubtedly more value should be placed on the work they do.
We have long had a culture in this country of belittling referees and making them public enemy number one when we feel wronged by their decisions.
Managers like Mikel Arteta need to behave better and take responsibility for their actions
Recent actions by managers, including Mauricio Pochettino, have set a standard in the game
Mail Sport’s Simon Jordan believes referees are not being appreciated or given the necessary plaudits at the moment
Mail Sport has launched a campaign to stop the abuse of referees at all levels of the game
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That creates an unhealthy cocktail and ultimately a serious lack of appreciation for people who are an integral part of our national game. The general behavior of football people – managers and players – undoubtedly needs to improve. They need to have more respect for authority and recognize that authority. This means that managers will behave better and take more responsibility for their behavior.
Whether we like it or not, people will imitate how managers behave in the same way as young players who watch footballers spit, swear and get covered in tattoos and will follow suit.
Of course, managers have to behave, not just because the grassroots mimic what happens at the top, but because they set the standard and code for how players behave in the professional game.
If managers aren’t disrespectful and shouting and shouting at referees, and don’t behave as certain members of that fraternity have done in recent times – I’m looking at you Mikel Arteta and Mauricio Pochettino – then this would contribute to a better impact at grassroots level. But is that touchline behavior the reason why grassroots football has a discipline problem? Is that why referees get headbutted? I’m not so sure. This has been going on for a long time and I don’t think it’s fair to blame it on recent incidents.
The behavior of managers does not explain why players walk up to the referees on Sunday mornings and punch them in the face. The big problem is that the refereeing profession is not valued, respected and not given the honor it deserves. The only people in the game who are truly valued are players, managers and owners.
If you create a culture where public servants are respected and their authority is recognized – as Howard Webb is trying to achieve – we will be in a better place. As I have indicated before, there seems to be resistance from the football mafia – players, managers – who do not like having control taken away from them and who do not like being put back in their box.
If we create an environment where referees can thrive at the top of the game, it is clear that there will be better flow at the bottom and it is the FA’s responsibility to introduce more support and structure for them into grassroots football.
As things stand, referees are not viewed by the players in the game as anything other than a necessary evil for a perceived greater good. When they show a little more authority, we get hackneyed comments from the likes of Pep Guardiola, calling on referees to be more humble. How are you just like you, Pep?
Referees chief Howard Webb is trying to build a culture where referees are respected
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola previously suggested referees should be more modest
We have a problem with respect in society in general and that manifests itself in football with the excuse that it is an emotional game. People express their opinions in this country by climbing over statues and doing exactly what they want.
We feel entitled to behave as we please. Some of that has to do with social media and how it allows people to say what they think, but then they go out into the real world and say it, which has consequences.
Police apparently let people get away with things because it suits them. All these things together form a problem in society. We live in an angry society – but all this may have nothing to do with abusing referees on a Sunday morning, it’s just abhorrent behaviour.
Managers could undoubtedly behave better – they are off the clock with some of their behavior – and understand that referees are an asset. But Arteta jumping up and down like a demented jack-in-the-box and Jurgen Klopp being aerated on the sidelines is simply no excuse for poor behavior lower down the pyramid.
Do we think that getting a reset from managers on their obligations and the consequences of their behavior will go some way to creating a better culture for referees in the long run? Maybe.
Are we suddenly making managers all sweet and light every time they come near a referee? Does this then mean that there will be more respect in the base game? I’m not so sure.
The FA should install body cameras on referees at the base and ban offenders from playing the game
We are miles away from what it was like twenty years ago. Remember when Roy Keane attacked the referees when a decision was made against Manchester United? The behavior of players is much more influential and has a much greater impact than that of managers. A manager jumping up and down in the dugout or wagging his finger at an umpire simply doesn’t have as much of an impact as the behavior of players and their lack of respect towards the umpires.
What can the FA do then? To begin with, we must place the right value on our referees. If every part of football improves its game, we could end up with referees at the grassroots who are happier with their lot. Put bodycams on them all and ban people from playing and get more prosecutions to solve this problem.
Good examples start at the top, with people who have some professional respect for referees. If they do, there is the possibility that there will be marginal improvements and marginal gains, but that is not a panacea because it is the behavior of society that is the problem, not just football.
If we set the highest standards at the top and the message from the FA is that there will be consequences if officials are treated poorly, then this will have an impact further down the pyramid.
But will it eradicate everything, will it be a panacea? I’m sorry, I don’t think so.
Be brave, Gareth, flip the switch at the right time
This England team has the potential to be the best we’ve seen since 1966, but it isn’t yet.
The performances in qualifying for Euro 2024 were commendable, but all that matters are the tournaments.
The personality of our manager versus the quality of our players is the eternal balancing act. All the ingredients are there for a successful side. We have so much attacking quality: Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Jack Grealish and Phil Foden, as well as dynamism in midfield with Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice. This should be the foundation of a world champion team and anything short of a win at this summer’s European Championships should be considered a disappointment.
The only reason we won’t win the Euros is if, when the moment comes in the big games, Gareth Southgate (right) doesn’t flick the switch at the right time.
We have to take it to whoever the opponent is in every match. For forty minutes against France at the World Cup we looked like we could beat any team in the world and that has to be the mantra. Things will only go wrong if we aren’t brave enough, but if we are, this team has everything you could want and they just might do it.
England have the talent to succeed at the European Championship, but Gareth Southgate’s must avoid caution
Absurd that clubs are blocking a ban on ‘loans to related parties’
What nonsense it was this week when eight Premier League clubs – Chelsea, Manchester City, Everton, Newcastle, Nottingham Forest, Sheffield United, Wolves and Burnley – voted against a temporary ban on loan deals between teams with the same owners.
It highlights the ridiculousness of the vested interests that now control our game. If you start using ownership of multiple clubs to circumvent Financial Fair Play, we are heading for a world of hurt.
The Premier League is trying to clean house with sanctions imposed on teams like Everton, and then something like that is approved by the clubs. It’s absurd.
The vote means Newcastle can borrow stars from the Saudi Pro League, despite Newcastle’s owners also owning four SPL clubs: Al-Hilal, Al-Ahli, Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad