Nah, confidence player.

There's a chance he might've done well this season but there's probably a better chance he would've continued to suffer. Happy to see him doing ok elsewhere and I think the move is good for all concerned.

Yeah, I am certainly not sad Gervinho is no longer with us. He wasn't a poor player for us, but so, so frustrating.

Oh, Gervinho was done at Arsenal. I just think it's a shame that the fans felt the need to hassle him the way they did. Wenger practically admitted that he couldn't play him at Emirates any more.

Allegri must still be picking the team in Milan. Essien-De Jong in midfield 😆

Balotelli crying on the bench.

He'd be suicidal if he joined us.

He didn't cry because he was substituted. Napoli's fans were shouting racist insults at him and his mom.

You sure? Seedorf didn't say anything about racism after the match.

Been widely reported since. Not sure how much Seedorf knew right after the game at his press conference. He might just have been sticking up for a player who clearly was in an emotional state.

I was under the impression that the claims of racism were just the usual twitter bollocks.

I read racism as well. Wasn't aware his mother was there. Seriously though. These are Klaus' boorish men in large groups. Serie A attracts some Neanderthals.

Sure, no doubt reports of racism from the fans towards a black player at a Serie A match are wildly exaggerated. :hmm:

I see the point to be fair, because some of the accusations aimed against Serie A really are baseless, and they arise precisely because people think: "That's just how the league in Italy is". All I saw yesterday, however, was a lot of journalists and Serie A proponents doing damage control on Twitter and in their respective blogs, and that sort of behaviour doesn't sit right with me. People can ask Balotelli why he cried and I'm sure they will. He might even give an answer. What's probably undeniable at this point is that there were racist chants during the game. People who were there heard them. I'm thoroughly disappointed at journalists who dismissed the suggestion off hand based on what Seedorf said at his post-match presser minutes after the final whistle. As if it would debunk anything. And extending that thought - as if the possibility of Balotelli crying solely for being substituted would make the issue go away.

I don't understand the incident fully, probably nor does anyone except Balotelli himself, but if there's a prevailing attitude that racism from the fans is normal, and that therefore Balotelli shouldn't be unduly disturbed by it, that's not cool.

For all the usual reasons, that's just not the right calibration for a response from the media and the football world.

The implication isn't so much that racism is normal but more along the lines that 'it didn't happen' because there were apparently other, semi-valid reasons for Balotelli's tears. So the discourse turns into a version of: "Oh people are so prejudiced against Serie A, they always cry racism when something happens". That shit doesn't sit right with me for a number of reasons.

Klaus wrote:

Oh, Gervinho was done at Arsenal. I just think it's a shame that the fans felt the need to hassle him the way they did. Wenger practically admitted that he couldn't play him at Emirates any more.

If you charge tourist prices, you can't expect unconditional support. People want good players on the show for the 2 hours they are there.

I don't like Wenger passing the buck like that. Can't expect him to keep his nerve in a title race if he can't even put up with criticism.

It was more a case of Gervinho not being able to cope. As a manager it is just smart to not select a player who can't perform, for one reason or another. Wenger has been getting abuse up and down the country for 17 years - I think he can cope just fine.

Wenger gave Gervinho every chance last season, and in fact Gerv looked like he was stepping up at one point, then reverted. He wasn't up to being an Arsenal player.