By Paul Gardner I guess it had to happen. Someone had to get injured at the last minute, injured so badly that he would miss the World Cup. Well, not just someone –it would be a big star. And so it turns out. Germany’s Michael Ballack is the unlucky one. Playing for Chelsea in […]
referees
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
A dubious history of pre-World Cup clampdowns
By Paul Gardner Every four years, as the World Cup rolls into sight, we get the news that the rules of the game are not quite as good as they ought to be. And so welearn that a minor change is necessary for the tournament to be played properly. Either that, or the referees are […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
The PK feint banned
Soccer’s rule-making body, he International Football Association Board (IFAB), has ruled that penalty-kick takers may not stop and feint as they take spot kicks. FIFA aims to introduce the newrule in time for the World Cup. The maneuver during the run-up to take a penalty kick has become popular in Brazil, where it is known […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
The Unacceptable Face of FIFA
By Paul Gardner I continue to be astonished — and I do not astonish easily — at the extraordinary claims that FIFA makes as to the extent of its authority. Here is an international organization devoted to the organization and control of soccer, worldwide. Certainly, then, a form of global government. It has its own […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
Needed: A Special Rule Book for Goalkeepers
By Paul Gardner Not for the first time, Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger has been bitching about Sam Allardyce and the way that his Blackburn Rovers see fit to playsoccer. Far too physical, in Wenger’s view. Not at all, says Allardyce, everything we do is within the rules. Which leaves it up to the referee to […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
Steve Nicol gets tangled up in the physical game
By Paul Gardner I see that the Revs’ Steve Nicol is complaining about rough play. Specifically, he believes that his player, Sainey Nyassi, is being fouled way toomuch, and that referees are not punishing the offenders. To the extent that he is right — and that may well be 100 percent — I sympathize with […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
Clash of Coaching Egos Coming Up
By Paul Gardner Inter Milan vs. Bayern Munich was not the Champions League final that we thought we were going to get. Certainly not the one that many — including me– would have preferred. But there you are — that’s what we’ve got, and there’s little to argue with in the semifinal results. Before that, […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They're Saying
“I’m kind of getting fed up trying to look after Sainey Nyassi. Game after game, he’s getting kicked, pushed, shoved, you name it and nothing’s going on. He’s going to bebadly injured soon if the referees don’t take care of him. … We encourage our players to stay on their feet, be strong and go […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Quakes' goal legit, but not Sounders' winner
[MLS REF WATCH] Three incidents from last weekend’s MLS action and one last subplot to the bizarre Jaime Moreno goal from earlier in theseason are featured in this week’s analysis of what MLS referees did right or wrong. … NOT OFFSIDE. Chris Wondolowski snuck in behind the Revs back lineto run onto a ball from […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
Referee Vaughn was right on Moreno goal
By Paul Gardner I’ll confess to amazement when referee Terry Vaughn allowed Jaime Moreno’s goal against Philadelphia last Saturday. Not that I saw anything wildly wrongwith what Moreno did, anything that smacked of a foul, like crude body contact. Nothing like that at all. But we’ve become accustomed to the fact that goalkeepers are granted […]