The Stoke defender has been in the news for a number of reasons which must have left him quite disoriented.
A tackle that resulted in Aaron Ramsey’s horribly broken leg saw him exiting the Arsenal match weeping to serve out a four match suspension. On the same day he gets an England call up from Fabio Capello. A joyful event under any circumstance but for Shawcross it was laced with grief knowing what had transpired a few hours before. A 22 year old faced with a maelstrom of emotions.
Shawcross, admirably in all of this has not forgotten Ramsey. He has been in touch inquiring about the Arsenal midfielder’s condition. In this he has been helped by Tony Pulis who in my opinion is one of the more nurturing souls in the league.
“It was very, very important that we got hold of the lad as quickly as possible and spoke to him,” said Pulis.
“We will continue to keep in contact with him through his recovery period.”
The genuine remorse shown by Shawcross has earned him hundreds of messages of support from Arsenal fans. It was a tackle without ill intention that ended tragically.
He has Theo Walcott convinced as the two of them met at training just before the England match.
Walcott said: “He’s a very humble lad. He’s a great defender. Obviously he knows what’s happened and feels very bad. He’s apologised. He’s not a player to do those sort of tackles. He’ll put his head down and work very hard for club and country. Any hard feelings? No, not at all.”
Maybe because his conscience is clear, Shawcross has vowed to play the same way. Meanwhile, Martin Taylor now at Watford is still suffering the pangs of his tackle on Eduardo two years later. He has never been the same.