It's time to stop the yob culture

In the last day or so, Chelsea lost to Barcelona in a cup match. It is clear that the referee did not have a good game, but the real problem came from the apalling behaviour of the players who verbally assaulted the referee and other officials. These are men who are extremely well paid and are at the top of the profession.

These men are role models for thousands of others young and old. How then can we condone behaviour like this? What was even worse was the way that the manager seemed to excuse their behaviour.

This is symptomatic of the yob culture that permeates our society from top to bottom. There is a lack of good manners and respect, and the media are the worst cheerleaders for this.

It's time that action is taken against footballers who behave badly. The sanctions have to be severe. Maybe it's time that any player handed a yellow card should immediately be banned for a number of games, without pay. Anyone sent off shold not play for the rest of the season. Anyone sent off in two consecutive seasons should be banned for life.

Yes, the punishments are severe, but from whom much is given, much is required. It's not unreasonable to expect some discipline, respect and good manners from those paid extraordinary sums of money and whether they like it or not are role models for thousands on thousands of men and boys.