Desecrated
I think it is quite obviously Nastastic's error.
Few scoffs there? That's because anyone who has seen the footage knows that it was a mistake by Joe Hart. Even Joe Hart knew it was his own error, own misjudgement that caused the goal. There is no other side of the sheet here. It's a one way street of blame. Big shame for Manchester City too because they lost vital points they should of earned & not for the very first time this season through Hart's fault.
I really don't see how it's a mistake by Nastastic. He has done nothing wrong. He stood his ground, followed his marker and done the routine of heading the ball clear of Torres. Had Hart stayed his spot and sweeped up the free ball once Nastastic had sent it his way, Chelsea wouldn't of got the two extra points and I'd probably be writing a debate that actually has a viable alternative stance. I don't think communication is an excuse in Hart's favour either. It is one of the very basic principles of Nastastic's role and something that Hart should be accustomed to as a Premier League goalkeeper.
Joe Hart has found himself in a ever-sinking quagmire through his latest blunder. In hindsight, we can look back at decisions that goalkeepers make, like these, and ridicule them as bad decisions. Which is what makes Hart's more baffling. He had put himself in no mans' land once more. He should know better. There are previous cases (vs Sweden, vs Villa) where he has sweeped off his line to kick the ball away and found himself conceding goals so he has no excuse this time around.
So, what's next for Hart? Being benched for a few games is definately the way forward. But how do you re-introduce him to the team? Especially if Pantilimon hits stride with fantastic form? You would be taking a risk to place him back on the bench for a goalkeeper who has been the cause of more than 7 points this season (vs Chelsea, vs Villa, vs Cardiff) and other various games (vs Bayern). There is also no guarantee he won't make those same mistakes again. It's too soon for Manchester City to ship him off or even purchase a younger or better goalkeeper. It is perhaps best to see him in action for England against Chile & Germany, two fantastic attacking sides of different style & quality, before making any rash decisions about his forseeable future in the Manchester City shirt. All we know for now is Manchester City would be in a better position without his continuous errors. And the latest one is the perfect opportunity to continue to grow and establish himself as a class player. Or in the minds of some people, a world class player.
DwayneAustin
The person to blame for Chelsea’s winning goal is Joe Hart.
When the Chelsea player sent a long ball down the pitch towards the Man City goal, out of hope more than anything, there was little danger of a Chelsea goal being scored. Joe Hart, as goalkeeper, was in his own eighteen yard box, and defender Matija Nastasic had moved in front of Chelsea striker, Fernando Torres, and was in a position to deal with the situation, a situation which centerbacks deal with several times every match, especially in a Premierleague match where long balls are prominent.
However, the situation only took a turn for the worse when Hart decided to run out of his eighteen yard box and attempt to clear the ball himself, even though Nastasic appeared to be perfectly in control of what he was doing. What resulted was possibly the most embarrassing mix-up we are likely to see this season. Nastasic headed the ball back towards his own goal, over the on-rushing Hart, which allowed the opportunistic Torres, who had been behind Nastasic, to capitalise on the mistake and score into an empty net.
To be fully sure of who is culpable for this goal, the situation must be examined from the view of both Hart and Nastasic, individually.
Nastasic’s View
When the ball is hoofed down the pitch towards the Man City goal, Nastasic already has a five yard headstart on Torres and is in clear control of the situation. He is running towards his own goal, and carefully watches over his own shoulder as the ball falls out of the sky in front of him, at the same time, he can see Torres chasing him and with Torres’ reputation of being a fast player, and having already witnessed him destroy one of City’s fastest players earlier in the same match, Nastasic is aware that he must clear the ball from danger as soon as he can. He has several options, he can:
1. Try to kick the ball sideways out for a Chelsea throw-in: this would result in Chelsea getting the ball deep in the City half of the itch late on in the game, giving them a chance to win.
2. Kick the ball out for a Chelsea corner: this would probably be the worst option he could take at this moment. It would give Chelsea an even greater opportunity to score and it would suggest to his manager that he panics under the pressure.
3. Try and control the ball and dribble it away from Torres: far too dangerous against a player of Torres’ speed.
4. Pass the ball back to his goalkeeper and allow him to clear the ball to safety: this option would deal with the danger and allow City to remain in possession of the ball, perhaps giving them one last chance to mount an attack and win the game.
Nastasic chose option 4. Pass the ball back to his goalkeeper so his team could remain in possession. What Nastasic did not account for, however, was that his keeper was at the same time running out of goal like a mad man and was only a couple of yards away from him when he headed the ball back towards goal.
Hart’s View
As the ball is cleared down the pitch towards his goal, Joe Hart has a clear view of the entire field. He can see where the ball is headed, he can see Nastasic getting to it first and he can see Torres running behind him. Hart will have faced this situation countless times in his career, however, he decides to take matters into his own hands and he leaves his box. Outside of their eighteen yard box, keepers are at their most vulnerable, and when keepers get a rush of blood to the head and go crazy for a split second, that’s when defenders are at their most vulnerable. This is exactly what Hart did in this moment. Despite making numerous blunders over the previous eighteen months which resulted in opposition goals, he decided to take a this chance, even though it was quite clear that out of the three players involved; he was always third best to get anywhere near the ball.
He failed to provide every goalkeeper’s most important role for their team: be the last line of defence. Be the defenders’ safety net. Joe Hart failed in his role here. Even when he got there, he appeared to be unsure whether he was going to kick it or head it and ended up kneeing Nastasic instead, which suggested indecisiveness on his part.
Conclusion: From examining the situation from the view of both players, there is only one person to blame for Chelsea’s winning goal, and that person is Joe Hart.
Bullseye
Who was more to blame for Chelsea's winning goal vs Man City, Hart or Nastasic?
Sunday, the 27th of October, 2013. The English capital, London, was in a brisk evening. 41,495 fans had packed themselves into Stamford Bridge, the home ground of Chelsea FC, to witness the premier league match against title rivals, Manchester City. The game ebbed and flowed, until the 90th minute arrived, with a calamity of an error in defence between defender Matija Nastasic and goalkeeper Joe Hart, led to Fernando Torres scoring the winning goal for Chelsea, and attributing to increased speculation about Joe Hart’s ability. The question that will be answered here is who was more to blame for the goal – the defender, Nastasic, or the goalkeeper, Hart. I will suggest and prove categorically that the clear answer for who is more to blame for the goal is Joe Hart.
The reason it is clearly Hart’s fault is because of his position. He is the goalkeeper, the custodian, the general commandeering his army. It is up to him to perform the most important job on the pitch, and that is to keep the opposition from scoring. In cricket, it is the job of the batsmen running towards the ‘danger end’ to signal if a run is possible. In football, it is ultimately the keepers call on how to defend long range kicks, such as the one that led to Torres’ goal.
When addressing a question such as this, it’s important to look at the track record of the player. Joe Hart is no stranger to blunders between the posts. February 9th, 2013, Hart’s blunder of dropping Lambert’s shot against Southampton allowed Steven Davis to score, thus ending City’s chances of victory. August 14th, 2013, and Hart, playing for England, fumbled James Morrison’s shot into his goal. Fortunately for England, this mistake did not cost them victory. August 25th, 2013, and Hart again makes a blunder against Cardiff City, making an airswing in an attempt to clear a corner which lead to Campbell’s decisive goal. September 28, 2013, against Aston Villa, Hart again messed up and allowed Weimann to score his decisive goal. October 2, 2013, against Bayern Munich, Hart came up with two blunders – the first, fumbling Ribery’s powerful shot over the line, and the second, his inability to deal with Robben’s near-post shot. This is in the space of half a season, which suggests that Hart’s mentality is clearly being affected. A man who had a fast rise from loanee to national player, the comfortable nature of his position could be affecting his game, but that is for another discussion.
One could suggest that these errors in his keeping had nothing to do with the error that contributed to Torres’ goal in London. That is a legitimate case, as most of them were due to a great strike or sublime finishing as opposed to poor keeping. However, the exact same scenario that led to the Torres goal has also occurred more than once with Hart.
Instance #1
A long ball booted forward by Blackburn, Hart advances out his penalty area and gets caught up with his defender, which allows the Rovers attacker, Kalinic, to bypass the attempted blockade and strike the ball into an empty net. Hart could have surely trusted his defender, Toure, but elected to advance out of his box, and attributed to the error.
Instance #2
Long ball forwarded by Amazulu, and again, Hart advances. This time there are no defenders in sight, just the Amazulu striker, Ndulula, and Hart, and Ndulula bypasses Hart to score the goal. Nobody to blame here except for Hart advancing from his penalty box
Instance #3 – the goal in question
Long ball forwarded by Chelsea, Hart advancing, causing confusion with his defender, Nastasic. Amidst the confusion, Torres pounces and scores the definitive goal.
After examining Hart’s history of blunders, especially those which have occurred in similar circumstances, it is quite clear that Joe Hart is more to blame for the Torres’ goal than Nastasic is.