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World Cup: Uruguay vs. Ghana (Matchday Commentary)

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Ghana Uruguaylogo

One quarterfinal result is in the books, and Ghana will look to send a second South American nation home when they take on Uruguay today at Soccer City in Johannesburg (ESPN/ESPN3.com, 2:30 p.m.).

It's a bittersweet match for USA fans wondering what could have been, but the Black Stars will look to the support of an entire continent as they seek to become the first African nation to progress to the World Cup semifinals.

Standing between them and history is a top-heavy Uruguay side, a solid defensive side that boasts a strike duo in Luis Suarez and Diego Forlan that few teams can equal. Suarez rose to the occasion against South Korea in the Round of 16, so is it Forlan's turn against Ghana?

I'll be providing live commentary throughout the match. As usual, feel free to leave all thoughts, comments and analysis after the jump. Enjoy the action.

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PENALTIES – What an astonishing ending to Ghana's World Cup run. Luis Suarez goes from goat to hero, saving Uruguay with his handball on the goal line. That's all from me for today. Thanks for following along today, and be sure to check back for more World Cup coverage from SBI.

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PENALTIES – Sebastien Abreu to take. AND HE SCORES.  Uruguay are threw! Abreu with a cheeky chip, Ghana crash out. What an ending to a World Cup match. That's a gutsy penalty, and Soccer City goes quiet. Ghana players are crushed.

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PENALTIES – SAVE Muslera! If Uruguay score, Ghana are out.

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PENALTIES – SKIED BY Perreira. Way over, still 3-2.

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PENALTIES – SAVE Muslera! 3-2 still. Mensah, the captain with the miss. Poorly taken.

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PENALTIES – Scotti hits it straight down, pressure to Ghana. 3-2.

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PENALTIES – Appiah slots home, past Muslera. 2-2.

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PENALTIES – Victorino takes, and converts for Uruguay. 2-1.

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PENALTIES – Gyan to take. What's going through his head at this point? Perfect. 1-1.

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PENALTIES – Forlan to go first for Uruguay. Easily slots home. 1-0 to Uruguay.

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PENALTIES – Drama is about to unfold in Soccer City. Muslera vs. Kingson in goal.

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PENALTIES – Absolutely monumental here. No Suarez for Uruguay, five kicks each.

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PENALTIES – Bigger question now: Gyan will likely have to take a penalty. How will he respond?

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PENALTIES – Suarez is off, but Uruguay is still alive. Heartbreak for Gyan. They had a chance to win it with the very last kick of the game. That's some ending to a quarterfinal match.

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120th minute – GYAN MISSES AND HITS THE BAR! Going to penalty kicks.

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120th minute – RED CARD SUAREZ PENALTY TO GHANA! The ball gets cleared off the line by Suarez with his hand.

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120th minute – Ghana win a free kick — last kick of the game before penalties.

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119th minute – Close for Boateng! A long throw is headed on by a Fucile, and Boateng just a foot or two away from putting that in the upper corner.

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117th minute – If any side is going to win this, it looks like Ghana. Only a few minutes left to do that.

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115th minute – Off the line. Gyan does well to win the ball in the box, but is closed down, and the ball ricochets around and almost bounces in.

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114th minute – Forlan slices one wide after a rare venture forward from Uruguay. Didn't control or hit that one well, but not too far.

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112th minute – Both sides look content to ride this one out to the lottery of penalty kicks.

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110th minute – Gyan flashes a header wide after a good stretch of build up. Appiah's cross in not the best, and Gyan was under the ball. Ten minutes to go.

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107th minute – Whatever the outcome, the short rest will surely be a problem heading into Tuesday's match against the Netherlands.

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105th minute – Last 15 minutes are underway. It's either penalties or a mistake that lets the other in.

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HALFTIME – End of first 15 minutes. Penalties on the way, surely?

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105th minute – Only one minute of additional time.

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104th minute – Kingson collects a Lodeiro cross, after the youngster finds some space in Ghana's box.

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102nd minute – Sarpei now down for Ghana. Play stopped once again.

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101st minute – Game looks destined for penalty kicks at this rate. Very few ideas being carved out from either side.

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99th minute – Gyan looks okay, and play is back on.

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97th minute – Sloppy play from both sides, plenty of errors and turnovers in the midfield. Fatigue certainly a factor at this stage. Gyan is down after a couple of challenges in the Uruguay box.

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94th minute – Asamoah gets a good cross in after a one-two with Gyan, but it's out for a goal kick. Ghana still has one sub left — will they use it?

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92nd minute – Good start from the Black Stars, keeping the ball down in Uruguay's area. Gyan lurking, looking for that early strike.

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91st minute – How much does Ghana have left? They did this last weekend, can they do it again? First half of extra time has started.

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END OF REGULATION – Extra time it is. Ghana 1, Uruguay 1. Forlan's strike keeps his side in it, while Ghana find themselves right where they were last Saturday.

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90th minute – A bad Prince-Boateng cross ends a promising counter attack. One minute to go.

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90th minute – Three minutes of added time. Ghana with a flurry of possession, but extra time looks almost certain at this point.

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88th minute – Sulley Muntari comes off for Dominic Adiyah. Muntari the hero at this point for the Black Stars after his long-range strike in the first half.

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86th minute – Challenge from Victorino keeps Boateng from attacking forward. Uruguay look the more threatening side, more likely to score in these final minutes.

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84th minute – Things should open up over the last five minutes Uruguay pushes forward.

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82nd minute – Off a corner, Uruguay hit on the counter attack. But Pereira shoots well over despite having a couple of options to pass to.

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80th minute – The Black Stars maintain the edge now, though offensively limited in booting balls in the direction of Gyan.

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78th minute – Poor defending by Ghana on the ensuing corner results in a bit of a chance for Suarez, but he only succeeds in booting it out. Uruguay on top, Ghana struggling in possession.

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77th minute – Yellow card for Sarfei, hauling down Suarez. Free kick, and it's Forlan time. Suarez is left wide open, but can't beat Kingson.

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76th minute – Uruguay making a final sub, with Sebastian Abreu replacing Cavani.

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74th minute – Stephen Appiah comes in for Sammy Inkoom. Another long Forlan free kick almost causes problems.

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72nd minute – Better movement in Ghana's midfield, with Asamoah linking up well to create a half-chance for Annan, whose volley is well off target.

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70th minute – Ghana 1, Uruguay 1. Into the final 20 minutes — extra time on the way?

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68th minute – Gyan takes a free kick, no dip or swerve on it and it's well wide and over.

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66th minute – Each team is showing flashes of a goal-scoring threat as Prince-Boateng goes down in the box. Doesn't convince the ref, however.

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63rd minute – Ghana looking shakier in the second half. Anyone's game at this point as Cavani can't find Forlan in the middle.

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60th minute – Into the final 30 minutes. Muntari ruins a chance for Ghana to break. Who is going through in this one?

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59th minute – Yellow card on Perez for a challenge on Asamoah.

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57th minute – Ghana have to keep things together, not lose discipline. Momentum shifting to Uruguay at this point.

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55th minute – While Kingson deserves some fault on that, the movement from the shot too much for Kingson to handle.

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55th minute – GOAL FORLAN! He's tied it up on a free kick. Pantsil commits a foul outside the box, and Kingson is wrong-footed on that shot.

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53rd minute – Ghana break, but Kevin Prince-Boateng's bad pass thwarts the Black Stars.

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51st minute – Uruguay looking to get back in this. Haven't look to menacing in the first five minutes.

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49th minute – More defensive problems for Uruguay turns it over just outside its own penalty box.

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47th minute – Can Ghana's young defense hold up? Cavani goes on a dangerous venture forward after a mis-clearance that Ghana recovers to handle.

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45th minute – Second half is on. Nicholas Lodeiro is on, as Uruguay has made a second substitution.

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HALFTIME – With Forlan and Suarez, Uruguay will certainly be able to create more chances. Lots left in this one. Without Lugano and Diego Godin, Ghana will have a chance to add to their lead.

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HALFTIME – It's a deserved goal from the side that started off looking a bit nervous, but settled in and looked the far more confident team. Let's see what that does to the second half. The loss of Lugano, Uruguay's captain and central defender, leaves them with a lot of work to do.

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HALFTIME – Ghana 1, Uruguay 0. And that's the last kick of the first half. Muntari's goal delivers a shockingly, yet somewhat deserved lead heading into the break. What a stunning turn of events.

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47th minute – GOAL GHANA! Muntari winds up from about 35 yards, smashing a low, driven shot across the ground the beats the 'keeper. Sensational.

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45th minute – Inkoom speeds down the right and crosses for Prince-Boateng who tries an overhead kick that doesn't find the target.

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45th minute – Into the final minute, should be a couple more for injury time. Ghana finishing the first half on top of this one.

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43rd minute – He's up and looking well. Ghana looking confident on the ball at the moment.

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42nd minute – Nervy moment for Uruguay as Fucile takes a hard fall after misjudging a ball with Inkoom.

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40th minute – Poor execution on a free kick. Forlan simply passes the ball out of bounds, looking to go short to a teammate.

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38th minute – Substitute, as Uruguay captain Lugano has to come off for Scotti. Muntari heads wide off a great ball from Asamoah.

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36th minute – Forlan staying a bit higher up the field at the moment, and was nearly in through, though the flag is up.

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34th minute – Boateng and Gyan are linking up nicely, almost combining to get the striker behind the Uruguay defense. Ghana seizing more of this game at the moment, putting Uruguay on their heels.

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32nd minute – Two chances for Ghana go begging. Uruguay had been the better side for the first half, but the Black Stars can attack swiftly and suddenly.

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31st minute – WIDE BY GYAN. Great attack from Ghana, and Kevin Prince-Boateng finds Asamoah Gyan, but the Rennes striker misses wide to the right.

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30th minute – WIDE BY VORSAH! A free header for the central defender and it just misses to the left of the post. Great look there.

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28th minute – Forlan and Suarez are troubling Ghana's defense with their runs, earning yet another corner.

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26th minute – Sloppy passage of play leads to a turnover, Suarez turns on the ball, shoots on the volley and is thwarted by Kingson's fingertips.

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24th minute – Forlan shoots wide of the target after a poor touch from Ghana's midfield. Suarez left wide open on the left hand side.

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22nd minute – Vorsah takes down Suarez, who is quickly becoming the most fouled man in a blue jersey.

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21st minute – A lovely ball from Muntari is headed away by a Uruguayan defender. Ghana has to create scoring chances on set pieces.

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19th minute – Seven Uruguay shirts packing the box, and only two Ghana players. Yet Gyan almost comes away with an opportunity despite the lack of support.

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18th minute – Save Kingson! A corner takes a deflection off Mensah, but Kingson is alert enough to keep the ball out. That, and it hit him in the head.

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17th minute – Forlan is a man possessed early on, all over the place and winning a corner for his side.

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16th minute – Uruguay the better of the two sides. Forlan and Suarez seem a bit more likely to do something. Gyan seeing very little of the ball, Ghana struggling to knock the ball around.

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14th minute – Forlan with another long free kick that Kingson punches away and is then fouled by Suarez.

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12th minute – Free kick now for Uruguay, a foul on Muntari. Forlan stands over it. Ghana clears it.

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10th minute – Suarez looking to get on the end of long balls forward but nothing doing. Uruguay packing in deep, forcing turnovers and looking to attack quickly.

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8th minute – Uruguay heads it out and Asamoah's volley back in goes well wide.

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7th minute – Not much going on. Neither side with a chance early on, though Ghana has earned a free kick in a dangerous spot. Bodies in the box to get on the end of Muntari's free kick.

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4th minute – Vorsah sends the ball out, corner for Uruguay.

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2nd minute – Two sides exchanging possession, Suarez sent sprawling to the pitch by Mensah. How many niggling fouls will the Black Stars commit?

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1st minute – The referee blows his whistle and we are underway. Who will advance to play the Netherlands?

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PRE-GAME – Uruguay has three clean sheets in four matches. Asamoah Gyan must come up huge for the Black Stars.

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PRE-GAME – Share your predictions in the comments section below. A couple of minutes until kickoff.

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PRE-GAME – Anthems are underway. Uruguay has made two changes – Mauricio Victorino and Alvaro Fernandez replace Diego Godin and Alvaro Pereira.

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PRE-GAME – Sulley Muntari and Isaac Vorsah replace Andre Ayew and Jonathan Mensah in the starting lineup, respectively, for Ghana.

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PRE-GAME – Ghana's young team has the difficult challenge of breaking down Uruguay, a side that has conceded only one goal in four games. Tough task for the Black Stars, who have had trouble scoring during the run of play.

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PRE-GAME – Here are the lineups:

GHANA

——————-Gyan——————–

————————-Boateng————-

Muntari———Asamoah———–Inkoom

——————–Annan——————–

Sarpei——Mensah—Vorsah—Pantsil

——————-Kingson——————

URUGUAY

———Suarez———-Forlan————

—–Cavani—————–Fernandez—-

————Arevalo——–Perez———–

–Fucile——Godin—-Lugano—M. Pereira–

——————-Muslera——————–

Comments

  1. He will serve a suspension by not playing in the semi-final (at least), where his team will definitely miss his scoring capability.

    Reply

  2. bottom line all you people need to see is that the ghana players were literally CELEBRATING when the penalty and red cards were given. were they bitching that the ref should chalk another goal up for the black stars? No, absolutely not, because even they know thats retarded.

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  3. … piling on FIFA when FIFA doesn’t govern the Laws of the Game. That job belongs to the International Football Association Board.

    Reply

  5. Actually i think Bocanegra should’ve taken one for the team and fouled Gyan before he had a chance to shoot. Oh well shoulda woulda coulda.

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  7. The red card matters a lot because he cant play in the next game. The play was very smart. No different then the Demerit handball vs England. Don’t blame the ref it’s Ghana’s fault they couldn’t capitalize.

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  8. To echo what some have said, at the risk of being called stupid by others, a red card doesn’t seem like enough of a punishment in this case because of the way things played out, because if Suarez hadn’t done it, the other team would have won for sure without question.

    Of course, Ghana should have scored the PK right after to win, but that didn’t happen and then Uruguay won in pks, making Suarez’s red card foul to prevent the game winning goal that much more egregious.

    I’d support a suspension for Suarez for the rest of the tournament, which would be in line with the FIFA’s spirit of fair play. Whether FIFA would do this as demonstrable support of fair play is another question.

    Reply

  9. The only thing I agree with you about is that FIFA is a disgrace, but not in this instance. Whether his handball was instinctive or deliberate, it was a smart play even though he knew he would get a red card and a penalty. This is totally different from the Thierry Henry incident because Suarez was punished and Henry was not; plus, Henry (successfully) tried to fool the ref, whereas there was no such pretense here.

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  10. How is it so dumb. Looking at handballs on the goal line in terms of refs awarding goals is a foolish argument.

    Affirmitive action……what?!? You are a fool.

    Plain and simple FIFA is a disgrace and this world cup has shown the world how many changes FIFA needs to implement; one of them being handballs on the goal line.
    Uruguay cheated plain and simple. No matter what happened after that play was in no way fair to Ghana.

    Reply

  11. I think the better analogy would be the third baseman tripping the guy on his way to score the game-winning run.

    Reply

  12. No F’in Sh!t, he completely cheated. The ball was going in the net 100% sure!!
    Giving a PK on such an instance only rewards the person that cheated nobody else.
    FIFA needs to change the rule on handballs on the goal line.
    What a disgrace!

    Reply

  13. Too bad nothing. They are lucky to have played Uruguay. The only reason the beat the U.S. was because of two horrible mishaps.

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  14. No amount of reply can change the fact that the ball never crossed the line. No amount of arguing that it would have been a sure thing can change the fact that it didn’t score. Have SBI posters gone mad? You cannot give a goal that wasn’t, no matter how close or how “unjust.”

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  15. Really? Because they had the chance with the penalty kick. Justice? Come on people, this is not a courtroom. Sports are a place to kids to learn the world isn’t just.

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  16. Too bad that Ghana lost, that handball was so terrible by Uruguay, I mean I know you want to win but that just leaves a bitter taste. Too bad Gyan didn’t make the one that counted and made the one that at the end did not matter. But geez outside of Gyan other players were just not that good at taking penalty kicks so I doubt any of them would have been any better.

    Reply

  17. Can you be more original? Just for your post, I hope they lose to Germany just so I don’t have to see this post again.

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  18. Really? How about when a receiver is just awaiting the ball when a defender plows into him in desperation. At least in soccer, there is still the goalie to get past. In football, everyone is already beat. It isn’t that bad of a comparison.

    Reply

  19. It is naive thinking, just like “fair play.” Screw it, if a fool collapses in a heap, especially if a ref waves it on, play it. People fake injury enough that I don’t have a problem with it anymore. This isn’t some gentleman’s club where you can’t offend someone because they are a member of your club with whom you have drinks.

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  20. Yeah but the NFL doesn’t hand out touchdowns even if there is no doubt in anyones mind that a person would have scored if not for a penalty. You just cannot count scores that haven’t gone in. Before someone yells “basketball,” think of how often there are scoring chances, more or less every possession, so the importance is greatly diminished, and I would also point out that FIBA allows goaltending.

    Reply

  21. ¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!¡AR-GEN-TINA!

    Reply

  22. Giving refs the ability to award goals is one of the dumbest arguments I have ever read on this site. Suarez used his hand and received a deserving red card and Ghana was deservedly given a penalty kick. Ghana missed and then they had the chance to win on pks. Suarez did the smart thing (I don’t understand why everyone was saying he would be the goat before Gyan missed, as he gave Uruguay a chance to win, whereas they most definitely would have lost if he didn’t stop the ball with his hand). The ref did the right thing for once and followed the rules. My general problem with FIFA is that the refs often don’t and won’t explain why. Yeah, most everyone wanted Ghana to win, but affirmative action has no place in the World Cup–may the rules be clear and applied fairly and the best (or most lucky) team win.

    Reply

  23. Most hated? He stopped a sure goal. Even had Gyan sunk the penalty, he did the right thing. Stop the ball, take the punishment. There are things like this in other sports. Cornerbacks haul down receivers if they get beat early, to avoid yielding a touchdown. Basketball players intentionally foul to avoid a layup.

    All of you moaning about “the injustice” of what happened, stop whining!! Referees cannot just make goals appear.

    Reply

  24. straight red and point to the spot its no one elses fault if the striker misses the goal. you know your job and in the 120th minute you HAVE to put it in. I actually think suarez saved uruguay.

    Reply

  25. both matches today were ones for the book. No doubt in 4,8 or even 12 years people will still be talking about these games.

    Reply

  27. I agree with you, but there is just no way to define “on the goal line” in a precise fashion. At some point the ref, replay person, FIFA, the Council of Wise Elders or whoever else in involved ends up making an arbitrary decision that certain shots just look like they are going in and others don’t.

    And again, I agree that FIFA has lost control of fair play, generally speaking.

    Reply

  28. Yep. Bob Bradley simultaneously gave the ball away close to the goal, failed to close down his man, and made a weak diving attempt to save Boateng’s goal. Damn him.

    Reply

  29. So when is that NFL writer going to write another piece where he informs the world on how to fix the most popular activity on the planet? Maybe compare a hands red card and penalty to a basketball foul or a baseball strike. Can’t wait.

    Reply

  30. yea, the refs are not awarding goals but awarding the team for their due diligence and hardwork at scoring the goal.

    I’ll keep on repeating that handballs on the goaline need to be treated differently than any other penalty in the box. Should be a goal and a red/yellow card (depending upon the intent of the player).

    Reply

  31. We have that is most other sports. A guy sits in front of a TV and makes the call on a challenge or a ref. challenge.

    There needs to be a distinction between a handball on the goaline versus any other foul committed in the box.

    FIFA has lost control and needs to start instituting replays, extra refs, post-match yellow and red cards for unseen fouls and diving.

    I love the game of soccer but the sport that FIFA pushes on the field and regulates is a travesty, especially in terms of fair play.
    I’ve lost complete respect and honestly would rather watch ESPN talk about Lebron all day at this point even though that gets quite annoying.

    Reply

  32. Meh. I also think Ghana should have been awarded a goal, but “outdated FIFA rules” seems like piling on FIFA for no reason.

    Reply

  33. In the 121st minute, what does a red card matter? Suarez can’t shoot a penalty, big deal.

    I understand why they couldn’t and wouldn’t award a goal there, but doesn’t mean that there’s a question that Ghana would have had goal if it wasn’t for Suarez knowingly stopping the ball with his hand in the 120th minute. The example above was closer to goaltending than just your normal foul (where the player is awarded the basket, despite it not going in).

    At the very least, Suarez should be booted from the tournament. But justice would have been Ghana winning the game.

    Reply

  34. If a player were suspended for foul play in the Premier League, he wouldn’t be able to serve his suspension in pre-season friendlies. Just think the same logic should apply to internationals, as well.

    Reply

  35. What’s so stupid about suggesting he serve his suspension for A-level international fixtures? I just think it’s silly that if he were given a lengthy suspension that he’d be able to serve it while his country engages in meaningless friendlies. I actually think that would be pretty smart.

    Reply

  37. They did complain but under the rules as they are they get a free kick.
    I find it hilarious how a sure 100% goal goes to being an opportunity to get a goal which in the case of PK’s is 60-70% accuracy. There is nothing fair about that and simply awards the cheater for what he did.

    Reply

  38. That is not even remotely a good comparison, your comparison is more akin to a professional foul when defender takes down offensive player ahead of him. The fact you state “he would do it again” only gives weight to the fact that FIFA needs to change the rule to allow goals on handballs on the goaline and it should still be a red card.

    Again, Fair Play has completely gone out the window

    Reply

  39. I don’t think replay changes my argument. Then it is just a guy in front of a TV screen making a decision that the ball probably would have gone in. You will have very dicey situations in which it is not clear that the shot would have scored, but the ref/replay says it would have. Perhaps if there was a brand new rule– that ANY deliberate handball inside the goal box is an automatic goal. Then, the ref would just have to judge whether the defender was in the box, and if it was deliberate (which they do already for red cards). That new rule would change the game quite a bit though.

    And I agree about FIFA!

    Reply

  42. I agree that refs shouldn’t be allowed to put goals on the board, but I don’t think your analogy is perfect. I think a cornerback pulling down a receiver in the end zone is more like a defender pulling down a striker on a breakaway–in both cases, scoring isn’t a certainty, even if it is likely. If you want a football analogy, I think Suarez vollyball spiking the ball on the line is like a defender climbing on the crossbar in football to knock down the game-winning field goal (yes–I realize that’s a ridiculous scenario).

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  43. And the award for the stupidest comment goes to Mike, he could not make because he is talking to Sepp about changing all the rules he wants and making sure Suarez is hanged at the nearest tree.

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  44. So it’s based on positioning of defenders, eh?

    Law 11 is too, and there’s never any controversy over that one…

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  46. I didnt see a single Ghana player complaining that Suarez stoped that ball, they were all happy that they had a pk. So stop your crying.

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  47. DId you place a bet and had Ghana advancing? Because you sure cry a lot. Go make your own sport so you can make your own rules.

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  49. Its called Replay. Red Card and Penalty kick is not appropriate for a handball on the line when the ball is 100% going in the goal. I don’t care what the ref does, but there has to be a goal allowed.
    A Red card and PK does no justice to the game. It actually awards the person and team that cheated, no one else benefits and it puts all the pressure on the other team which did no injustice at all.
    In my opinion this is much different than committing a foul in the box.

    FIFA is a complete disgrace.

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  50. He got punished what more do you want? Suarez cant play the next game. Make your own sport were everything is fair and the refs can make up goals just to make it fair.

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