I think his officiating has returned to his pre-FIFA level. He is certainly an enigma though--he was one of the top officials before his white badge, he put it on and its like his confidence disappeared. Now they took it off him, and it feels like he's back on top of his game again.
Poor Villarreal is the one stuck overseeing the proper lining of the field. Too bad the stadium screwed it up, but I agree that it seems like something that could have been discovered much earlier. Good for the crew for walking it off though if that's how the problem was discovered.
Game in Montreal is being delayed. Refs come out for pregame and find the PA is four yards too narrow. They are restriping right now. Canada and their silly metric system.
Restart for this was a throw. Birch was shown yellow after a conference with the AR. With the ball out of play, doesn't this have to be red? 801277137894445057 is not a valid tweet id
Umm, I'm pretty sure you can't do that. Isn't that the definition of "trickery" https://www.facebook.com/groups/SoccerRefereeSociety/permalink/1427466323931023/
Referee crew arrived "late" to the game because of the larger than usual crowd, causing a large traffic jam. I guess it's a reminder to leave earlier when officiating a playoff match.
Sorry, what I meant was that if this wasn't called a foul, it has to be dealt with as misconduct. That leaves Unsporting Behavior (which I guess in this case would be for having a lack of respect for the game?). If the ball is out of play, physical contact would typically be dealt with as VC, wouldn't it? In any case, I'm good with a yellow, but from a technical standpoint, I think there's an argument that it has to be a red.
No, there really isn't. You see yellow cards all the time for physical misconduct after the whistle. You have "third man in" cautions when someone adds fuel to a mass confrontation, you have double yellow cards for pushing exchanges, and the list goes on. There's really nothing technical in the Laws that would suggest physical misconduct after the whistle has to be a red card, so not sure how you make that argument. Now, if you want to say that it should be a red card based on the nature of the action, I have no argument with you. I think it's a deliberate swinging arm and Burch is very lucky not to see red. I'm guessing a combination of it being the playoffs and Lodeiro's actions in the lead-up to the swing (pursuing the ball after the whistle, apparently clipping him from behind, and then still kicking at Burch with his left leg just as the swing occurs) were enough for Penso to determine (after consultation with Muschik) that just a yellow for Burch would be justice. In a regular season game, I think there's a very good chance we have yellow for Lodeiro and red for Burch.
As a Rapids fan (and unlike many of my fellow fans) I have to say that Penso and his team seemed inconsistent last night but got pretty much all the major decisions right last night. The first Seattle goal was onside. The PK wasn't strong but it was legit. The Cronin yellow was a good call. The only real complaint I have is that Doyle got a yellow for persistent infringement (correctly) but Alonso didn't. That only matters because Alonso was on yellow card warning so not carding him means he's available on Sunday.
11/27/2016 Western Conference - Championship second leg Colorado Rapids v Seattle Sounders Dick's Sporting Goods Park (4:00pm ET) REF: RICARDO SALAZAR AR1: Ian Anderson AR2: Corey Parker 4TH: Fotis Bazakos 11/30/2016 Eastern Conference - Championship second leg Toronto FC v Montreal Impact BMO Field (7:00pm ET) REF: JAIR MARRUFO AR1: Corey Rockwell AR2: Adam Wienckowski 4TH: Baldomero Toledo
That is the only reason why that wasn't a red card. The only reason. Nothing else. Textbook red card for violent conduct. Look at the Montreal vs. Toronto game. A total of 7 players were one yellow card away from being suspended for the second leg. The game finished with no cards shown... If the plays highlighted by Borg aren't cautions then what are. Just a farce like it is every year... Then PRO assigns Marrufo to the second leg. The referee who has the lowest card count in the league and who has more games without a caution than anyone else...
While I certainly agree it was a factor, I'd be hesitant to assign it as the only reason. The fact is that big decisions in big matches require absolute certainty. If Penso's alarm bells weren't going off from his angle and Muschik was on the other side of the arm, and neither of them are sure... you start to have the doubt that really weighs on your mind in a setting like this that wouldn't happen in, let's say, our regular Sunday amateur league match where there's a lot less consequence (and no way of ever knowing) if you're wrong. I just think there's a big difference (or important nuance) between "it's the playoffs, so no red card" and "it's the playoffs, so I better be damned sure about any red card." I also think we should all be careful when we say this is an MLS phenomenon. It's not. Take a look at this incident from the UCL Tuesday, with one of the best referees in the world: https://streamable.com/rq4b How is that not violent conduct? No card was even given. My only guess is the same as it is for the match in Seattle: Kuipers wasn't 100% sure he saw intent or malice, didn't want to pull a red in such a big setting when he had doubt, and realized he could manage through it without the red (something Penso probably also factored in). Doesn't make it right. But it does make it reality. Finally, on a separate note, I do agree with you that Guzman seemed to be avoiding yellows at all cost, something that Penso wasn't necessarily doing. The inconsistency between those two approaches is more of a concern to me than a single decision relative to Burch.
It's not just MLS but IMO MLS is the most egregious and it has been this way since it's inception. Keeping players in the games, either this one or the next one, takes priority over correct application of the LOTG.. Not all UCL referees do this. There were two red cards in the Man City match yesterday and neither was 100%, in fact both were reasonable dubious and might have been easily avoided. PH
You see this in tournaments. It happens in the World Cup too. I think the punishment for consistently getting yellows in a tournament is a good idea. However I find refs tend to be more hesitant. What should be a straight red for contact to the face in MLS gets knocked down to a yellow. Sounders have been hit by this criteria numerous times. I am actually fine with the yellow. But MLS has shown all season this is a red card offense. Do any of you think the yellow card accumulation policy actually does more harm than good in terms of game management etc? I see less punishment for persistent infringement, the criteria for a yellow also increases.
Well for what it's worth, Geiger has openly admitted during instruction that he was told the same thing at the WC.
"I am shocked, shocked I tell you!" Thanks but this has been mentioned previously. He should also confess/admit that the same thing goes on in MLS, but they pay his mortgage, so I won't be holding my breath. In other words he is an employee, (I know he is actually a contractor) so will do what ever his employer wants. PRO is not really independent despite what they try to tell you. In reality, it is a subsidiary of MLS. The fans are actually being scammed into believing that the LOTG are being applied. PH
It is. Embarrassing that Guzman did nothing. Has he not come across this before? Not read LOTG? Afraid to make an unusual call in front of that crowd? And I'm sorry, but being late because of game traffic isn't an acceptable excuse for me. Why weren't they at the stadium 3-4 hours before the game, well before any fans? This is one of the biggest games of Guzman's career, and it's in a stadium that doesn't host games regularly. It's a failure of preparation not to give yourself extra time in pre-match in case there are things that need to be dealt with. Not even going to talk about the cautions from Borg's video. Just blatant.
I simply can't believe that wasn't called. Did the players protest? Light themselves on fire? That's probably the most blatant trickery I've ever seen go unpunnished. Heck, that happened in a USL game a few years back, and the ref cautioned the keeper and did an IFK in the box (which, obviously was not the right call either, but at least he knew something was off). I didn't see the game, but I gather that was the least of his problems, but wow.
Let me give you another perspective... I think we can all agree that with the circumstances that led up to that play, there is 0% chance that all 4 referees didn't see it. Furthermore, there is no scenario that bush can have the ball in his hands and it not be an infraction of some kind. However, a good referee knows that if it's called, a card must be produced and given that his direction was probably to avoid cards, his only option is to no call it. Not only that, but he doesn't bring attention to it either with any hand gestures or body language giving the impression that he cares so little about what just happened so why should anyone else? Once calls are made we are obliged by the laws how to restart and how to sanction. I actually think this is shrewd refereeing to get out of a potential dicy situation. But don't think all 4 referees were probably wtfing each other on headset. Finally, I'm surprised anyone thought the MLS didn't have their hand in PRO. I'm not even sure they hide this. The MLS is not obligated to use referees of a specific grade and if the referee organization that staffs their games isn't flexible to their demands then the MLS will find one that is. In a country trying to grow the game, is the best course of action to remove our best players during our biggest showcase of American soccer for cheap yellows?
I think you're stating aloud what the rest of us know in our hearts but don't always say - there's a piece of me that "wants" to believe it's all going to be treated more in line with the LOTG as opposed to producing an entertaining show where none of the players take on the role of Ensign Jenkins (the red shirt in Star Trek). While I understand your premise of "in a country trying to grow the game, is the best course of action to remove our best players during our biggest showcase of American soccer for cheap yellows?", I don't necessarily agree with it. Instead I wish that, rather than shooting the messenger, US Soccer/MLS would pull those players aside and say "what were you thinking?" I suppose they aren't trying to cater to someone like me, instead the casual viewer who knows the game just well enough and likes Jozy Altidore. In my mind by doing what I feared, they're doing a disservice to the game they're trying to promote in the US. While "everyone does it" that performance by Guzman...well, if it passed an assessment then it proves he did exactly what he was told - referee like it's "showcase soccer".
It's not shrewd refereeing, though--it's simply ignoring the laws. Don't get me wrong, Guzman is a good referee, but there's really no excuse for not calling this, even if it's at the highest level of American soccer. In the past few years, I can only think of one referee who has appropriately called these technical infractions (twice, I believe), and that's Stott. The onus is on the players to behave appropriately, and if they commit an infraction worthy of a "cheap yellow", that's 100% on them. Their actions caused the caution. In a country trying to grow the game, referee development and applying the LOTG correctly are crucial components of that growth (and FIFA, Professional, and National Referees need to set the example)--not letting players off the hook by ignoring the laws. In the same line of thought, player responsibility is also something we need to improve on in the US, and get rid of the attitude that we as referees need to ignore components of the laws to keep players in the game. If you don't want to win stupid prizes, don't play stupid games.
Anyone know how officials travel is handled? I would have guessed it was orchestrated by PRO or the league?
I don't "know" - and I figure @coreyrock can help here - but I've heard in the past it is handled by the crew, and the league reimburses. By the way @coreyrock - thanks for the tweet about left hand/right hand when between the PA and Goal line - it was well-timed. I won some bets (and will thus get some free drinks) for that one.