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DeJong does it again

Nigel DeJong (Reuters) 

Dutch midfielder Nigel DeJong will always be remembered by U.S. men's national team fans for his leg-breaking tackle on Stuart Holden (and by most other soccer fans for his chest stomp on Xabi Alonso in the World Cup Final). The leg breaker was at it again on Sunday, snapping the leg of Newcastle midfielder Hatem Ben Arfa in a tackle that could best be described as reckless.

How bad was it? So bad that Dutch national team manager Bert van Marwyjk has rescinded a call-up of De Jong because of it.

If you haven't seen the tackle, here it is (and it's not for the squeemish):

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_233MxrENY&w=448&h=271]

What do you think of the tackle? Praying for the day someone gives De Jong a taste of his own medicine? Have more respect for the Dutch national team manager for his decision? Think FIFA should step in and ban De Jong?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Puyol’s tackle on fabregas was 100% a tangling of legs. It was hardly even a tackle. Plus, why would one Barcelona man do something like that to another?

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  2. Sorry, GW, I don’t buy the notion that this is just the way things are in Europe. I’ve seen plenty PL games, and rarely see tackles as viscious as the one above. And definitely never seen Bradley do anything that bad. Sure, games can get rough, but De Jong is in a different category.

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  3. Re DS’ comments, I’ve seen Paul Scholes, Michael Bradley and Steven Gerrard dish out even worse looking tackles than what De Jong did; the difference is, of course that their victims did not have broken legs. If you watch a handful of EPL matches closely, you’ll see quite a few tackles very similar to what De Jong did. But no one got their legs broken. De Jong is obviously losing his touch because I doubt he is actually trying to break any legs. That kind of notoriety is bad for business.

    My guess is FIFA, UEFA or the EPL won’t act on this because if they did you would be having an awful lot of players suspended on any given week.

    As for him not apologizing to Holden, my guess is other people have been tackling De Jong and his team mates like that his entire career; he probably views it as a standard part of the game so why apologize? It’s just business. Puyol broke Fabregas’ leg just before the World Cup and they are teammates with Spain.

    Holden is a big boy and he should know the risks everytime you step out onto the field. I don’t think American fans appreciate how rough and violent the game truly is in Europe and South America. Those of you who think Demspey is lazy and Jozy is no good should have watched the World Cup more closely and noted the severe pounding those two took. There is a reason M. Bradley is always running around; moving targets are harder to hit.

    In Europe a lot of the players quite literally would be on the street if not for these jobs so a little extra contact and some pushing and shoving is not that big a deal.

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  4. I agree, but I think it should be a Gooch forarm to the face during the National Anthem…let him play the rest of his carrer with a facemask

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  5. I am so glad the Dutch team decided not to call him up for the upcoming international fixtures. I hope FIFA steps in with additional punishment.

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  6. you “rue” the day that he (DeJong?) gets his? Not sure you mean what you typed . . . “rue” is kind of like remorse. I think I know what you meant. 🙂

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  7. No one on this blog understood a word of what they were saying in the commentary of the video posted but I have a feeling they were talking about how DeJong is a horrible and reckless player and they’re bummed that he happens to be Dutch. Now not only Americans hate him for carelessly braking Holdens leg but people the world over hate this guy.

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  8. How many broken legs is he actually responsible for? Going off recent memory, its just Stu and Ben Arfa, plus the ninja attack on Xabi Alonso during the WC. He’s been playing for a while. I’d be interested to know if this is a career trend, or just a few bad incidents in a short timespan.

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  9. Now I’m remembering my most recent break – a wrist – ok that was a dubious play for an over-40 guy to make against me. But still, injuries are part of the game as they always say. so discerning which are malicious and whcih are accidental isn;t that easy.

    But worth trying I agree.

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  10. ok but to be fair what about shawcross in epl? He’s a repeat offender, just his leg breaks didn;t happen in wc or against americans so we don;t care so much – what’s worse is right after he busted someone’s leg last spring, he got his first ever call up to England from capello, it was almost like a reward for being a thug.

    look, accidents happen, I’ve busted a friend’s foot myself on a clean play years back – honest it was clean – and had my shoulder broken by another friend – on a more dubious play in my opinion : ).

    so this can all be subjective, but there should be some standards…

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  11. What got me were the reports on how Holden and DeJong met briefly as they were on the same flight back to UK after that leg-breaking tackle – and there was no apology. Even an insincere one would say the guy has some clue – but obviously that wouldn’t be DeJong.

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  12. Agreed, but the tackle in question against Tevez was not that aggressive of a challenge anyway, plus it was just outside of the box. I agree with your sentiment, De Jong got part of the ball against HBA, but the other part of the tackle that broke his leg should have been a foul.

    I guess what I was trying to say is that the defender did get a piece of the ball against Tevez, but the tackle shouldn’t have warranted a foul, let alone a penalty kick. Whereas what De Jong did was legal in getting to the ball, but illegal with the scissor kick follow through.

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  13. Easily my least favorite player. He makes my dislike of some of the Mexican national team players look like nothing. Dirtbag. I still can’t believe that tackle on Holden in a friendly. Truly the only player I’d wish an injury on. Even Bommel, who’s a dirty player, doesn’t seem to want to take players our for months. Feel bad for Dutch guys like Kuyt who have a heart.

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  14. he seriously needs to be hurt and see what it’s like to be out for awhile. he’s reckless and an complete a-hole about it.

    what a piece of sh*t!!!!!

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  15. When does Bolton play Man City? I don’t know that Stuey is the guy to be breaking De Jong’s legs, but certainly he’s got to have some burly and reckless teammates with a mean streak….

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  16. All EPL teams should be gunning for this guy’s knees and ankles every game and end his career before he seriously injures one of their players.

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  17. De Jong is a total thug. If you look at the two leg breakers, De Jong hides the tackle by coming in low and hard with a kicking motion. His foot is slightly elevated and aimed right above the ankle (watch the Holden video again) so it looks like he’s going for the ball. He knows exactly what he’s doing. This is De Jong’s first strike in the FA so they will give him a max 2 game suspension. Chalk up wo broken legs and a kung fu kick for the skinhead.

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  18. Getting part of the ball does not preclude you from actually having fouled someone. You can get part of the ball AND still commit a foul – getting part of the ball doesn’t negate what came before or after.

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  19. De Jong was widely criticized in the Dutch media after the tackle on Holden because they thought of him as a real liability to get a red card when the games really mattered.

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  20. FIFA will not do anything because the incident occcurred in the EPL competition rather than in a FIFA tournament. However, EPL should be dishing out a lengthy suspension.

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  21. Being a BJJ practitioner (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) I would love the satisfaction of snapping this bullies legs… And what ever other vital joints I could disfigure… Ankles, elbows, shoulders, wrists…

    I still have not gotten over the incident with Holden…

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  22. Hmmm let’s see breaks Holden’s leg and show’s no remorse and doesn’t even get carded. Tries to break Xabi Alonso’s ribs and only gets a yellow, and now this. De Jong is scum. Effing talentless scum. I hope someone ends his career.

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  23. UPDATE – the FA has decided not to take further action against De jong for the incident (no cards were given)… fire away, trolls!

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  24. agreed, he looked calm when holden had his break, but when asked about it he apparently blasted De Jong after the game. I think he was more concerned about stupid tackles like that getting him sent off during the wc, but still.

    Kuyt won huge props too, right after Holden’s break he was yelling at De Jong pretty hard.

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  25. In SA we stayed at the same hotel as the Dutch team in Johannesburg. De Jong was a complete professional, very polite and friendly – nothing like his demeanor on the field. It really is surprising that he couldn’t muster up a polite apology when he injured Holden. Certainly, he’ll be punished by the league, and there’s definitely some future risk for him as well as I’d expect other teams will target him for injuring their own. That said, I think the idea of banning him for life or for as long as the other player is injured are extreme overreactions. Soccer is a physical game, and injuries do happen. And they’re going to be disproportionately incurred by defensive-minded bulldog types like Nigel. Believe me, he’s not the only player in the world that has dished out a handful of dangerous tackles in the last 12 months.

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  26. I’m sorry but there is nothing in the book or in the instruction of referees that getting any part of the ball makes a tackle legal. Getting the ball first or at all is a complete myth.

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  27. The root of this problem is that DeThug makes tackles like these ON PURPOSE. Have you ever watched DeJong play a game when he’s not trying to put someone in the hospital? I have, and once you see that he’s perfectly capable of playing the D-Mid/enforcer role using his skill and soccer IQ, it makes this crap that much more frustrating to watch. He is 100% capable of making a hard tackle without injuring someone. The bottom line is that he repeatedly, CONSCIOUSLY chooses to make horrible, career-threatening tackles.

    If his previous body of work (up to and including this tackle) isn’t enough to get him a ban, I don’t know what is. Will it take ending someone’s career before the FA or FIFA decide to take action?

    I’m not usually an advocate of players taking things into their own hands, but someone fully needs to sign Vinnie Jones to a one-day contract when they play Man City so he can give DeJong a taste of his own medicine.

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