Well now I thought I would take the opportunity to get my two cents worth about the general incompetence and out of touchiness of the governing bodies of World and European football. Normally I try to confine my comments to Galatasaray and other worthwhile causes but recent comments from Splatter and the other suits in the Geneva based "organization" compel me to print my thoughts into cyberspace.
The issue that broke the camel's back is about retrospective punishment for divers, or cheats. Check out the story at Soccernet. It seems to me that this is plain cowardice on the part of the authorities. Almost every game sees attempts by players to cheat, and yes I include Hakan in that after Saturday! And yes the referees have the power to decide if the player dived or otherwise and take the necessary action which is to issue a yellow card. I seem to recall reading recently, and damn it I cant find the link now, that only 7 yellow cards had been issued so far in the Premiership for "simulation" this season. This I think highlights a problem that FIFA seem to be ignoring.
When is a dive a dive?
This might seem obvious and when you have the benefit of seven different angle replays that the referee does not have, it is easy to spot the "dive". But for the referee he has to make a split second decision on something that he might have the best view of. SO I guess 98% of the time he is going to take the view that well it was not a foul but it was not a dive either and not issue the yellow card. And really can you blame him, unless he is 100% sure that must be the correct course of action! There are incidents in games where a player will go down and it is really difficult to tell whether he was touched or not. Think back to last season and Rooney against Arsenal, in real time it looked an obvious penalty but after numerous replays it could be seen that if there was any contact at all it was minimal. So what to do in this situation. Of course you could use video technology and turn a 90 m inute match into a 6 hour extravaganza with offence and defence and cheerleaders to take your mind of the boring tedium....sounds like American Football! Or you could have a review panel that sits and reviews complaints lodged by teams or referees regarding such incidents. Of course you can't change the result but you could ensure that deliberate cheating is punished by suspension, think about Anelka's Hand of God earlier this season. That was deliberate, changed the course of the game and was unpunished. That to me is wrong!
Or how about this, a limited time expulsion, or "sin bin" during the match similar to rugby or ice hockey. Say 10 minutes to reflect on your actions, and that gives the opposition immediate redress. Personally I think the sin bin is an excellent idea for the trivial offences such as kicking the ball away etc.
To me simulation of injury is as bad. You know where a player makes a mistake, lets the opposition in and goes down clutching his head, arm, leg and the rest of the team demand the opposition kick the ball out for treatment. That is also cheating but could be dealt with very easily. The referee could let the physio on to treat the player where he is lying rather than waiting for play to stop, or the player could leave the pitch for treatment without asking the ref and picking up a yellow card. Now I know the objections but Aussie rules and rugby manages this and it seems to ensure that only serious injury stops play.
And for the last one when are FIFA going to start compensating clubs for the players they use to make zillions of dollars at tournaments and then send them back injured and worn out so the clubs who pay their wages cannot use them. FIFA accuse the clubs of arrogance well I for one think Splatter and his cronies are totally wrong on this one. If I borrowed Oz Kanka's car and damaged it I would pay to get it fixed for example, so why should FIFA and UEFA escape payment for damage inflicted on property that is not theirs. And to accuse the G14 of starting a war there is something these self elected and very well paid suits should understand. I support Galatasaray and whilst I hope Turkey does well that should not be at the expense of my team and I think that goes for a lot of people out there?
So fellow football lovers what do you think, am I right or wrong or do you have better suggestions, lets here your opinions after all we pay all of these peoples wages, without supporters the game is nothing and where is our voice!!!!
4 comments:
I have to agree with your disgust at FIFA not agreeing to look at TV replays after a match to punish divers. As you said, during a match it is very difficult for a ref to adjudge a dive but if TV replays show a clear dive then that player should be punished. No question.
As for the sin bin suggestion. I'm not so sure. I think the current situation of getting a yellow for kicking the ball away is a pretty good punishment. So I'm a bit cool on that one.
Now for the point where I have no truck with Gulay's comments. Playing for your country is the ultimate honour and I don't give a damn who is paying the salaries. Does football exist purely for the sake of the clubs. No, it is for the players and us, the paying spectators. Have the clubs only recently found out that if they have a good player they may have to play in an international? Of course not. Like it or lump it, or go off and play baseball or ice hockey where many players would rather play for their clubs instead of their country.
Finally, you can borrow my car whenever you are in Ankara Gulay. Now, where are those insurance forms?
By the way Gulay, why isn't your site linked the the Galatasaray English website. If anyone should be linked there, it should be you
Thanks for the comments. I dont disagree that representing your country is the highest honour but why should FIFA and UEFA be allowed to use players, for free, make money, give the clubs nothing and send players back to the clubs who have developed them, pay the wages, partially through the fans money, injured and offer no compensation to the clubs! I believe what G14 has suggested an Insurance scheme paid for by FIFA, UEFA or the TFF, FA would be fair thats all. Why should a friendly match for you country deprive your team of one of its best players for example without some form of compensation for depriving the team of the services of a paid employee.
Stuff the G14 and all the shareholders. If a club isn't happy to have its players playing for the national team they should go and start a baseball team. If a player gets injured, well bad luck. Australia is more important that Sydney, England is more important than Chelsie and, contrary to Gulay's thoughts, Turkey is more important than Galatasaray. The national team is everything!
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