Question Number: 33645

Law 5 - The Referee 9/12/2019

RE: Pro Professional

Sean of Perth, Western Australia Australia asks...

In the Champions league Semi Final 1999 - Juventus v Man Utd. Dwight Yorke makes an attempt to round the goalkeeper Angelo Peruzzi however gets brought down, however a fellow attacker Andy Cole is on hand to score the goal. Is the referee entitled to discipline the goalkeeper for the initial foul? in this case I believe there was no action taken.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

HI Sean,

It was a great two game series as I recall. The keeper made a reasonable lunge and while a PK was plausible the fact the goal scored and sealed the deal the referee choose to simply ignore it given the result. As to what his reasons are best ask him.

If there is misconduct on an advantage played, that misconduct is not automatically waved should the advantage be successful. If there is DOGSO criteria met when the foul occurs, but AFTER advantage, a goal results, then the send off necessity is rescinded from play and ONLY a caution could be awarded given the goal WAS not denied. The effort to affect the outcome although it failed is still USB even if NOT adjudged as reckless. That is assuming the foul was not SFP, (serious foul play) then DOGSO is not important, the excessive nature of the foul would take precedence!

This was a fairly benign foul but I believe if there was not Mr Cole to tap it in, a PK and send off for Mr Peruzzi

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFiQFMdJif4

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Sean
Yes after playing advantage the referee can go back to sanction a player for his actions with a card.
In this case as a goal scoring opportunity was not denied it could not been a red card yet the referee could have cautioned the goalkeeper for unsporting behaviour.
Whether that is necessary or not is a judgement call for the referee to make. If the challenge was reckless then a caution would be appropriate or the referee needed to card for match control purposes.
In this instance with a goal scored and the scoring team none too concerned about it late in the game the referee just let it slide. In fairness to Peruzzi he did make an attempt to play the ball. Under current law, had a goal not been scored, it would be a caution.
Also in this competition two cautions results in a player missing the next game. Peruzzi was already on a caution from a previous game so another caution meant that he would miss the next CL game. While it should not be a factor and it was not for Roy Keane and Paul Scholes both of whom missed the final for yellows picked up in this game I think that referees in doubtful situations such as this just let it slide.
The match official on the night was Referee Urs Meier from Switzerland and he had three cards in the game. As mentioned Roy Keane and Paul Scholes for United and Edgar Davids for Juventus. Some nine players carried cautions into the game and I would say probably only cared he he definitely had to.