From Robert Bayliss:

If Eduardo's tragic injury achieves nothing else, it should be the catalyst for an urgent review of the current FA rules relating to crime and punishment.

Whether, as Wenger initially argued, Martin Taylor should receive a life ban for his brutal assault is at least a defensible point of view. That he should receive no more than the standard three-match ban surely isn't.

There are two key issues here. Firstly, relative justice. How can Taylor receive the same punishment as (for example) Jeremie Aliardiere, who was shown a straight red on the same day for simply throwing an arm in the general direction of an opponent's face?

Secondly, aboslute justice. Three matches is a woefully inadequate punishment and no real deterrent to player or club. Had the referee not seen the challenge, of course, Taylor would have been cited and up before an FA disciplinary tribunal. My guess is that they would have taken a serious enough view of the offence to have banned him for at least until the rest of this season. Arsenal fans will remember that Paul Davis once broke an opponent's jaw behind the ref's back - he got a nine match ban. Taylor could surely not have expected any less.

So, the moral seems to be, if you're going to 'do' someone - make sure the ref has a grandstand view. Think of it as a sort of excess on your insurance policy. All you need to pay for is the first three matches - everything else is covered.

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From Richard Hatton:

So at last the inevitable has happened. Two and a half years ago with Arsenal on the back end of a 49 game unbeaten record we went to Old Trafford looking for our 50th game without defeat. On the way to this record, home and away supporters had witnessed some of the most sublime one touch football any football purist would dream of watching. Alex Ferguson however had a plan. He was going to halt this progression in its tracks by sending his players out to ignore the footballing basics they were all capable of and instead spend the entire afternoon rough arming, bullying and generally kicking Arsenal into submission. To be fair to Ferguson he got it right, United won 2 – 0 and suddenly everyone had the blueprint on how to beat Arsenal.

It has only been the fitness levels and ability to see the “suicide” tackles coming that have enabled us to keep most players (with the exception of Diaby at Sunderland) fit and devoid of serious inflicted injury. Saturday has now however, come. The tackle on Eduardo was sick and executed by a Sunday league footballer playing in a Sunday League side, and I say that with no disrespect meant to Sunday League footballers. How on earth qualified pundits can claim that flying in over the ball by a foot and about a fortnight late didn’t warrant a dismissal just stuns me and reiterates an anti-Arsenal bias in the media even in this awful situation. I am sorry for Eduardo however I hope that however crap Taylor is feeling his inferior ability to defend in a fair and justified manor haunts his every dream and also sends a message to every Premership manager. Try and coach quality football, not breed on-pitch thugs.

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From Adrian Wagenaar:

I would on behalf of all Arsenal supporters like to apologise for the trauma suffered by Mart Taylor over the weekend.

It was most inconsiderate of Eduardo to put his shin and ankle in the way of Mart’s studs. Why couldn’t Eddie just let the ball go or get out of the way to allow Mr Taylor’s impression of JCB digger with the bucket in the high position take the ball and get in hard like his manager had told not five minutes earlier.

We know Mr Taylor is a good lad and if all the Birmingham players said so then it must be true and anyway the ref got it completely wrong because he only sent Taylor off because of the state of Croatian’s leg. A Blues player called Kelly thought it was not even a foul and when you look at it again and again you can’t help thinking, if only Eddie had not been quicker to the ball. If only he had not put his foot to the ground just as Taylor’s legitimate tackle came in. I do hope Taylor is able to play again soon and does not suffer any flashbacks.

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From Mike Power:

I thought I'd seen and heard it all. Then I saw this article on yesterday's Sky Sports website.

Obviously I’m not the cynical, grizzled old man of the world I thought I was, as I was genuinely shocked at the piece. There’s been an abundance of disturbing, crass and plain idiotic statements in football over the years, but this is in a league of its own - even if the article is a spoof.

If it’s genuine, I’d like to know this, Mr. Kelly: ‘What colour is the sky on the planet you live on?’