Question Number: 33357

Law 12 - Fouls and Misconduct 5/17/2019

RE: Adult

Osman Tanburacı of London, United Kingdom asks...

This question is a follow up to question 33346

Wow! thank you for all the answers. I have now the video of the incident and i think i am obliged to share it with you. Here you go:

https://twitter.com/justredyellow/status/1127995569903947777

Hyped about your answers that will come after seeing this one.

Thanks!

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Osman, Wow great video feed thanks we appreciate it!
I reread our previous responses to 33346 and I think we all covered it well based on your initial explanation which was very good!
For me though tough luck but that contact was more of a coming together and a careless foul by Green. In no way is that a red card for either player. The defender made a legitimate reasonable attempt to win the ball after knocking the ball away he was kicked (he did not trip) because the Green player could not bail out on his already in progress movement to kick a ball that suddenly disappeared. I personally can barely get to reckless in real time (harder not too in slow motion just because it makes you cringe)but if it was actionable in the minds of some in no way is it a red card in my opinion. It was simply bad luck. I hope the player recovers. DFK out in favor of the kicked player's team. Based on my first look initial gut reaction from the front on view, no card. transport injured player and make ready for substitution if one was available. The poor blighter took one for the team. It happens. If the red card decision was based for an excessive action of SFP I think it is in reaction to the injury not the true situation. It is true we are not supposed to judge the intent just if the foul if present was careless reckless or excessive. There is no doubt the kick was hard but it was a normal on field action it was not something aimed at or against an opponent. The injury here is unfortunate but we are not talking a studs up into the ankle we are talking more of an ankle appearing under the studs in a last ditched effort to win the ball. No one was more surprised then the green player at what occurred. Plus I will bet he feels terrible at the outcome! Some may feel well one team lost a player its only fair for him to be sent off due the injury but that is nonsense. Sometimes unfortunate things happens and it is not punishment we need but compassion & a sense of reality. Soccer is a physical game, it has consequences, it is true, but its not an eye for an eye retribution! One issue with slowing time, it frames the contact as almost premeditated, that the foot becomes a target as opposed to replacing the space the ball was. Video bias is what I like to call it! lol
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Osman
Thanks for the video
I believe we covered all the possibilities in our answers.
In the video no blame can be attached to the actions of the Green player as he believed he was taking a shot and out of nowhere a defender manages to kick the ball away.
For what it is worth it is a direct free kick against Green and as the action was careless then no card is required.
For me the attacker actions did not disregard (ignores) the danger to, or consequences for, the opponent as he simply did not know it was going to happen. It was a pure accident with unfortunately serious consequences.
As I stated in my original answer the same type of situation happened in my game last weekend with less serious consequences although the player had to be substituted due to the kick on the foot. I went with a free kick to the defender's team that got kicked and no card.

Answer provided by Referee Peter Grove

Hi Osman,
I agree with my colleagues that this was a careless foul by green and a free kick is all that is required. They have given sound reasoning for this which I feel I don't need to expand on.