Joe Cole was left 'devastated' after the first red card
of his career cut short his Barclays Premier League debut
for Liverpool at Anfield.
The summer signing from
Chelsea was inconsolable in the dressing room at
half-time, seconds after a dismissal that may yet be challenged by
Roy Hodgson.
The Liverpool manager, reflecting
on a lunging challenge by Cole that left Arsenal newcomer Laurent Koscielny fearing
he had broken his leg, said: 'I have seen the TV replays and they
suggest he is a little bit unlucky.
Red for a red: referee Martin Atkinson ends Joe Cole's
Liverpool debut prematurely after his late challenge
'He didn't dive at the player, he dived in front of the
ball to try to stop it being cleared up the line.
'He will be a big loss if he is suspended for three games, but
we will see if we can find out from some refereeing expert if there
is a case for appealing.
'I don't want to make a frivolous appeal, that's for sure. but
Joe has an unblemished disciplinary record. He has never been sent
off before and has picked up very few yellow cards. He is not the
sort who goes in for blood-curdling tackles.
'He was devastated at half-time. It was his debut, the
atmosphere was fantastic and he was desperate to do well. He was
not at the top of his game, but he was trying so hard to get
there.'
Arsene Wenger initially feared Koscielny had become the latest
Arsenal player to suffer a serious injury.
'Leg breaker': Arsenal feared the worst over
Koscielny after Cole's tackle
The Arsenal manager said: 'The physio actually told me
it could be broken, so it was a relief when we discovered his shin
pad had protected him.
'He has a big knock on his shin, and it seems Joe Cole kicked
him well, if accidentally.'
Arsenal were heading for defeat until Pepe Reina was beaten by
Marouane Chamakh in the last minute and compounded the error by
pushing the ball over the line after it rebounded off a post.
Hodgson said: 'Pepe has taken it hard. There were a lot of
positives from his performance, but the negative was the goal which
he would normally have kept out.'
Wenger hinted Arsenal may be his last managerial job after
signing a new three-year deal.
Dropped: Pepe Reina scoops the ball into his own
net
'I love this club and felt that the best way to show my
commitment, in the final year of my contract, was to sign a new
one, rather than keep saying "maybe" every week,' he
said.
'Don't worry, you will see me leave one day, and if we can
finish these years in front of me, with the team having done well,
I will be happy. If I feel I can't take the team any further, I
will go. But I tend not to plan decades ahead at my age.'
