SA 2010 – Who Will Steal the Show?

Original Post Date: 2010-06-12 Time: 09:00:16  Posted By: News Poster

By Opimist Y. Habila

Lagos – Is it foolish, or silly, to ask “who, in your own opinion, you think will steal the show at South Africa 2010? Of course, there is no doubt you are very much aware that world’s biggest football competition, in which 32 countries will be representing various countries and continents, kicks off in South Africa today, June 11, 2010.

Forgive me, but my question still stands: As FIFA’s most prestigious global tournament kicks off in the land of the Mandelas, who do you favour to steal the show at the Mundial?

You may be a sport, or precisely football pundit or a close follower of the beautiful game called football that you know of all the players that have recently been creating waves in various leagues across the universe. You know so much about the great and fantastic players, as well as players seeking to use the South Africa tournament to announce to the world their arrival on the global football scene. Just pause a bit and ask yourself one more time the question, “Who will steal the show at South Africa 2010? Who is the would-be figure to be the cynosure of all our eyes in South Africa? I can see you have a long list to run me through until I begin to doze.

Simply because you fancy the goalkeeping department of the football game, you are likely to pick Italy’s Gianluigi Buffon of Juventus, who was in charge of goal when Italy won the last World Cup in 2006 in Germany. May be you would prefer to pick Iker Casillas, Spain’s second most capped goal keeper after Andoni Zubizarreta (who never forgets Nigeria’s Sunday Oliseh). If Slovenia’s Samir Handanovic of Udinese in Italy who conceded just four goals in the World Cup qualifiers does not top your list, then, surely, Treble winner, Inter Milan and Brazil’s Julio Cesar is the right and best candidate.

The defence line is your area of interest. Then, Fabio Cannavaro (Italy/Juventus), the first defender to win FIFA World Player of the Year (in 2006) comes to your mind, or his Juventus team-mate Giorgio Chiellini, who is regarded as one of the toughest tackling defenders ever, well reputed for injuring players (he injured his team-mate Cannavaro in training, and Dutchman Robin van Persie of Arsenal in an international friendly which may have contributed to the Gunners not winning a silverware in the just concluded European football season.

What about Serbian Nemanja Vidic of Manchester United who helped Serbia to concede only a single goal in ten World Cup qualifiers to South Africa? Are you considering Chelsea’s John Terry or the duo of Brazil and Inter Milan’s Maicon and Lucio? Well, if Patrice Evra (France/Man U), and Phillip Lham (Germany/Bayern Munich) don’t make your pick, then, surely Gerard Pique (Spain/Barcelona) would.

Because your eye is always in the engine room, the midfield, you may not be thinking of the above players. But mind you, Michael Essien (Chelsea/Ghana) should not be mistakenly mentioned here because, he won’t make it to South Africa due to injury. Mexico and Deportivo’s Andres Guardado,

Liverpool and England’s Steven Gerrard, Brazil and Real Madrid’s Kaka (MVP at the last FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa, or the duo of Spain and Barcelona’s Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta, should do for you? Then, Portugal and Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo, immediate past FIFA Player of the Year, should do.

I take a pardon! It would be abominable and sacrilegious not to mention Lionel Messi (Argentina and Barcelona). Highest goals scorer in La Liga and UEFA Champions League 2009/2010 season and current FIFA WPY award holder. He is adjudged the best footballer on the planet currently that even Diego Maradona has confessed the little Argentinean is ‘about better than me.’

Because you have a knack for goals, your eyes are always on the forward or striking line. Sergio Aguero (Argentina/ Atletico Madrid), El Kun, i.e. the new Maradona (Maradona’s son in-law) may interest you. Although Brazil’s Ronaldo is not going to be at South Africa, a ruthless finisher like Didier Drogba should earn the title. If Drogba (Titi) is a doubt, then, Samuel Eto’o Fils (Inter Milan/Cameroon), Cameroon and CAF CAN all-time goals scorer record holder, three-time African Footballer of the Year award winner and the only player to have won the European Champions League back-to-back with different clubs, can perfectly fit in.

It could be Diego Forlan (Uruguay/Atletico Madrid), Wayne Rooney (England/Man U), Fernando Torres (Spain/Liverpool), Euro 2008 top scorer David Villa, who is basking in the euphoria of joining Barca, the club playing the best football at the moment, or even off-form Miroslav Klose (Germany/Bayern Munich) who is getting used to scoring more goals than any striker in in the World Cup, especially without Ronaldo of Brazil.

I do not stand to condemn you, but I am specifically concerned about the men who the beautiful game has bestowed upon them all the powers to decide the outcome of a match, that is the centre referees. The referee is the only one who decides whether it’s a goal or not and whether it’s an offside or not. He decides whether it’s handball or a penalty or not. He decides whether it’s a yellow or red card, goal-kick or corner-kick, etc.

Over the years, the sport has witnessed shocking decisions by centre referees, leaving disadvantaged teams and their fans fuming and, sometimes accusing referees of one thing or the other. Sometimes, disappointed fans take to violence just to vent their anger.

Imagine the ball has crossed the goal line and the referee says ‘no, it hasn’t’ even if the assistant referee says otherwise. Imagine the referee says it is a handball when it’s not and even when video replays show that he’s got it wrong. South Africa 2010 is sure going to come with its own wonder-referee, or wonder-decision, because it has always been like that.

Just last season, we witnessed a catalogue of ‘mistakes’ or ‘errors’ by referees in crucial games. Bayern Munich and Inter Milan may be the luckiest and happiest clubs in Europe in the just concluded season as some controversial decisions went in their favour. In the Champions League for instance, if Bayern had not been awarded an offside goal in Munich, Fiorentina might have knocked them off and if Diego Milito’s offside goal at the San Siro, had been over ruled for offside, it would have been a different story all together.

Frede Hansen, the Danish referee who claimed he didn’t see Thierry Henry handle the ball in a World Cup playoff match against Ireland, controversially allowed FC Porto to play the ball (free-kick) while Lukasz Fabianski had not returned to goal after handing over the ball to the referee. The referee awarded the free-kick against the Arsenal goalie for catching the ball adjudged to have been back-passed to him by Sol Campbell. Replays show Campbell touched the ball, but not as deliberate back-pass.

In 1966, England’s Geoff Hurst scored a record hat-trick in a World Cup final match. Against West Germany, his second goal had bounced off the crossbar before hitting the ground and the referee awarded a goal which is still argued if the whole ball had actually crossed the line. Perhaps, it remains the most controversial goal of all time. England won by beating West Germany 3-2.

In 1966, Argentina were sent parking after being beaten by hosts England in a match that their captain, Antonio Rattin, was sent off for “violence of the tongue” by the referee who didn’t understand any Spanish.

At Italia ’90, Maradona chased onto a looping miscued clearance from England midfielder Stephen Hodge and punched the ball past goalkeeper Peter Shilton into the net. The Tunisian referee failed to spot the blatant handball and Argentina eventually won the game 2-1. Maradona later described the goal as “The Hand of God.” Argentina eventually beat West Germany 3-2 in the final to win the trophy.

In a USA ’94 qualifier, David Platt was clean through on goal until he was openly and deliberately pulled down by Dutch defender Ronald Koeman in what is arguably one of the most blatant professional fouls in international football history. The referee should have sent off Koeman, but he did not and the Dutchman went on to score the winner that ended England’s hopes of qualifying for the 1994 World Cup.

In a UEFA Champions League 2009 second leg semi-final encounter against Barcelona at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea appeared to be robbed of at least three blatant penalties. Firstly, despite replays showing Florent Malouda was hauled down inside the penalty area, the Blues were only awarded a free-kick outside the box. Didier Drogba was pulled down in the box moments later, but his penalty claims were ignored by center referee Tom Henning Øvrebø, who also failed to spot an obvious handball by Gerard Pique as he jumped for a header in the area which should have been a penalty and possibly sent off the Barca defender.

France’s hope of featuring in the first ever World Cup on the African continent seemed to be over in a qualifying play-off match against the Republic of Ireland as a penalty shoot-out appeared obvious until a controversial winner four minutes from extra time. The Irish failed to deal with a long ball into the box which Thiery Henry smartly controlled with his hand before crossing it for William Gallas to nod in the winner. Replays show that Henry handled the ball even twice in order to keep the ball in play.

The Irish had missed out from the 1982 World Cup in similar fashion. At the Heysel Stadium, Belgium beat them 1-0 after

Frank Stapleton had a trademark headed goal ruled out for reasons that were never explained and have never been explained to date. Earlier on in Paris, they had lost a qualifier after France scored from a penalty awarded when the Spanish referee penalised Kevin Moran for heading the ball clear, apparently in the belief that the centre-back had punched it.

In a crucial 1978 World Cup qualifier against Scotland at Anfield, Scotland’s Joe Jordan handled the ball in the Welsh box and the referee mistook the Scottish striker’s hand for that of a Welsh defender and awarded Scotland a penalty. Donald Masson duly converted it as Scotland qualified for the World Cup in Argentina ahead of Wales.

Over two decades ago (Mexico ’86), Brazil beat Spain in controversial circumstances. Spanish midfielder Michel had fired the Spaniards into the lead only for the referee to judge – incorrectly – that the ball hadn’t crossed the line. As things would worsen for the poor Spaniards, Socrates was clearly offside when he nodded in the game’s only goal which was allowed by the referee.

Spain may be on top of the form (not minding their pre-tournament friendlies), but they have have bitter times in the World Cup. At USA ’94, Italy sent them parking after Mauro Tassotti somehow escaped conceding a penalty for a vicious elbow on Luis Enrique in the box. Again in 2002, they were knocked out on penalties by co-hosts South Korea, even though Spain should have won in normal time if Fernando Morientes’ two goals had not been erroneously disallowed by the referee, including one scored from a Joaquin cross.

Incidentally, in the previous round, South Korea had eliminated giants Italy, courtesy of some odd decisions. Damiano Tomassi had a goal disallowed for offside, even though he was comfortably on. Franceso Totti was sent off for diving, while he had in fact, been fouled in the box.

But in 1982 when Italy won the World Cup, even the Italians themselves know they should have been knocked out in the first round if Roger Milla’s ‘perfect’ goal against Peru had not been disallowed for an ‘offside that isn’t even close to existing in reality.’ Cameroon would have progressed from Group A at the expense of the eventual champions (Italy). Poor Cameroon in France in 1998, when, needing to beat Chile to progress to the second round, François Omam-Biyik had two goals controversially disallowed in a 1-1 group draw.

The Salvadorians also have a share of refereeing error as in 1974, Mexico quickly took a free-kick that had been awarded to El Salvador. Although they protested, the Egyptian referee surprisingly blew the whistle prematurely for half time as Mexico would go on to win the encounter 4-0. In the same vein in 1978, Brazil, against Sweden in the group stage, were denied top spot in their group when the Welsh referee Clive Thomas blew for full-time when Zico’s header from a corner-kick was crossing the line for what would have been a historic match-winner against Sweden. The disbelieving Samba Boys had to settle for 1-1 draw.

In 1982 in a semi-final clash between France and West Germany, the West German goalkeeper Harald Schumacher knocked France’s centre-back Patrick Battiston unconscious with a savage challenge outside his box, but Dutch referee Charles Gover failed to take action (should have at least sent him off). The keeper turned out to be Germany’s hero by saving two penalties in the subsequent shoot-out.

Original Source:
Original date published: 10 June 2010

Source: http://allafrica.com/stories/201006110618.html?viewall=1

xxxxx Sign Up