Leicester v Villarreal: Dominant win overshadowed by Fofana injury

A controlled Leicester City rant

When Fer Nino went into scissor tackle Fofana, everyone inside the KPS was left in shock as Fofana lay in a crumpled heap. When Leicester finally persuaded Villarreal to put the ball out of play, it was clear something was desperately wrong. As the severity of the situation came to light, the concern became mixed with anger at the striker Fer Nino. Let’s break down the situation to understand what really happened.

Given Fofana had left a little bit on Nino minutes earlier, he clearly wanted revenge. At best it was an act of petulant frustration, at worst pre-meditated assault. What’s more disappointing is how Villarreal themselves were victims of a horror challenge just days before. You’d have thought Nino would have known better, but clearly not unless he had been living under a rock over the last week.

There was still time for damage limitation on the part of Villarreal, yet Unai Emery failed to take him off, waiting until Nino had got onto the scoresheet. Leicester fans may remember Yohan Benalouane’s wild tackle on Stephen Warnock a few years ago, which led to the Tunisian being instantly substituted by Craig Shakespeare. Clearly, the same should have happened here, and it’s mystifying how neither the referee nor Emery took any action.

Yes, the player has apologised after severe backlash, but it’s a pretty derisory apology and cuts no ice with many Leicester fans. Given the context of what happened before the challenge, with Fofana leaving a little bit on Nino, I find it difficult to accept the idea he “never aimed to cause any harm”.  I’m sure he had no intentions to break Fofana’s leg unless he’s a reincarnated Roy Keane, but this was a petty act of revenge that had no place in a pre-season friendly.

The idea of competitive nature can hardly be used as an excuse either, his side were 3-0 down at the time of the incident. Of course, he was never going to admit he intended to ‘get one back’ so we are left instead with a rather generic and copy & paste apology.

However unlikely, the severity of injury combined with the reckless nature of the tackle surely warrants a retrospective suspension. Just because it is pre-season doesn’t mean tackles like that should be allowed, they should be punished regardless. If this tackle had taken place in any competitive setting Nino would have undoubtedly received at least a three-game suspension. Therefore, it’s time for the footballing authorities to make an example out of Fer Nino and ban him for a significant period of time. Friendlies should be a chance to build fitness, not damage the careers of other players.

Needless to say, this is probably wishful thinking as Uefa/Fifa/the FA are as useful as a water jug with holes in it. Even so, we live in hope that sufficient justice is handed out for his actions and that Wesley Fofana can make a swift recovery back to his best.