Ref blunder costs England
A refereeing blunder sees England denied a vital equaliser against Germany.
FIFA President Sepp Blatter can remove Mexico from his list of places to visit. The case for technology has irate advocates in Central America as well as in England.
The ugly scenes that marred Mexico's clash with Argentina as the teams left the field at half-time are on the conscience of world football's governing body, FIFA, as much as the Mexicans protesting to the referee over a goal that was illegal.
It might be that Mexico would have fallen at this stage anyway but that does not justify Fifa's refusal to consider the obvious. Carlos Tevez was two yards the wrong side of the defensive line when Lionel Messi clipped the ball towards him. His headed goal that gave Argentina the lead in a scrappy game of hitherto few chances, was illegitimate because he was active, yet it stood.
Grave error ... Argentina's Carlos Tevez scores his first goal from an offside position. Photo: AFP
Against Germany in Bloemfontein, Frank Lampard scored a legitimate goal that didn't count. Both were avoidable errors that hammer away at the integrity of the game. England fell apart, Mexico never recovered.
The linesman in Bloemfontein had some excuse since he could not travel at the speed of the ball and was unable to determine that Lampard's rocket had come down off the bar behind the line.
Here the official was almost in line with Tevez and made a grave error, one that cameras would have corrected at the press of a button and an injustice righted.
Tweeted and tweaked ... how Twitter user KoRnEd23 redrew the goal line after Frank Lampard's 'goal' for England against Germany was disallowed.
Oh no, says Blatter, since a decision has to be made by somebody, why not let it stand with the referee? Besides, he adds, the game is about controversy. It needs its talking points. Well, it has another now.
The truth, Sir, is that the officials are not always in a position to judge. That the camera lens is not always the answer is no argument against its use. It only has to be one per cent better to make a difference. If the camera can't decide then the referee's decision stands. If it can then the referee says thank you very much and the game proceeds with justice done.
Blatter is making himself and FIFA look ridiculous.
Melee ... Argentina coach Diego Maradona helps to break up a half-time brawl. Photo: AP
It is not as if a fixture featuring the grand dame of touchline drama, Diego Armando Maradona, needs a competing storyline.
As the players gathered in the tunnel Maradona went down the line kissing each of them on the cheek, a Latin ritual that was followed by another in the centre circle when Mexico's Manchester United's new signing, Javier Hernandez, sank to his knees to commune with God.
Why he didn't just shake his hand is a mystery. Maradona is not hard to find. Follow the photographers is the usual rule of thumb.
Angry ... Mexico players surround the referee after Carlos Tevez's controversial opening goal. Photo: Reuters
The coaching ensemble he leads looks like it was picked from the cast of Goodfellas, all slicked back hair and crumpled faces, not obvious hosts for ideas.
But at least there is life in this Argentina team, a side that pivots around the remarkable Lionel Messi. His first two touches saw him brutalised in the tackle, his third required the keeper to be on his toes to keep out a typically inventive chip.
The treatment meted out to Messi and his ilk is another item Fifa might want to add to their list of issues to address when the tournament is over.
Maradona's staff ... looked like they've been handpicked from the cast of Goodfellas. Photo: AFP
The default reaction of defenders to Messi is to go through the player regardless. Argentina have sauntered into the quarter-finals without a goal from him yet.
Tevez provided the flourish last night with a strike that cheered Adidas, the manufacturers of the maligned Jabulani ball, as much as him. There was little wrong either with the flight or the consolation scored by Hernandez.
This side of the World Cup draw heads next to Cape Town on Saturday, where Argentina meet Germany for a place in the semi-finals.
Nobody can complain that the best two teams did not progress in Bloemfontein and Johannesburg. The pity is that both games bore the stain of an unnecessary injustice.
The Daily Telegraph, London
