So since some were only 4ths, the actual ones sent home are: Coulibaly Larrionda Busacca Rosetti Lannoy Honestly, it looks like FIFA just covered its ass on the 5 major talking points in the tournament: 1. USA non-goal 2. England un-called goal 3. South Africa keeper send off 4. Argentina offside goal 5. Kaka send off It doesn't seem like overall performance was taken into account (except maybe with Couilbaly and Lannoy... but Lannoy did get a second match and Undiano Mallenco butchered his own). The way to avoid being send home was to not be involved in anything major, I guess. So the referees still there are: Irmatov Nishimura Al-Ghamdi Kassai Ruiz Stark Hester De Bleeckere Benquerenca Simon Batres Rodriguez Baldassi Undiano Mallenco Damon Pozo Archundia Maillet Webb That's 19 referees. Way too many. I suspect some that are working today are clearly done like Baldassi. It's an intriguing puzzle. Are guys like Al-Ghamdi, Hester and Maillet left as a political gesture, or are they the kind of guys that might get the 3/4 playoff?
I'm going to say a few things that are almost pure speculation, so take them for what they are worth: 1) Busacca came off, in my eyes, as an attention-seeker in the Euro 08 documentary. I don't think he did himself any favors in that movie. FIFA still had to take him to the World Cup, surely, but perhaps they saw something they didn't like for a referee on a knockout match at the WC. And perhaps something was even mentioned to the referees in question--I recall seeing some quote from Webb about how he was thankful the cameras weren't following him around again. 2) Busacca's suspension in the Swiss League. He flipped the fans off in a freaking Swiss league (or cup) match because they got to him. He's shown that he can fly off the handle under pressure. 3) Busacca, when given the possibility of making a major decision, tends to take it much more often than not. Puyol in the UCL. The keeper in this tournament. The Ukrainian defender for DOGSO at the last World Cup (though I think that was a gutsy call). The USA red card at the Confed Cup. I know a lot of these were correct (I defended several) or at least arguable... but there is a pattern of him almost always reaching for red when he has some justification. Perhaps FIFA combined that history with point #1 and #2 and arrived at the conclusion that they weren't dealing with the most stable official and he could be someone that unnecessarily sought attention on the biggest stage (of course, that doesn't explain their love affair with Rodriguez!). 4) I really think, based on the direction component in the text of Law XII, that FIFA ended up determining the DOGSO red card was wrong. And there was a blown offside call that led to it. It really was a double-whammy. I don't think it has as much to do with South Africa as people might say. His crew got two major decisions wrong in quick succession and it led to a goal and a red card. I've always thought De Bleeckere was better than Busacca. I think Busacca manages a smooth game when he's on, but I've also seen him be erratic. I don't think Busacca is the God that many have seemed to think he is (or the one that he ironically said he wasn't in the documentary). In short, though he had to be on the short-list coming into this tournament, I'm not totally shocked he fell out of favor so quickly. I'm a bit surprised he didn't get a second first round match to try to salvage his tournament, but once we reached the knockout stage it seemed like the writing was on the wall.
I think you are probably correct except on Lannoy. I think they probably are dinging him for the handling on Brazil's second goal. I don't think the Kaka send-off was controversial enough to send him home. There is a good case to be made (in the interest of disclosure, I'm one who feels it was a good send-off) that he earned it.
Given the matchups, FIFA does not have a whole lot of options for the quarterfinals. You've got to figure that a European ref will get Uruguay-Ghana, and that two of the three South America-Europe matchups will go to Archundia & Irmatov, but the last spot is anybodies guess....maybe Nishimura or Batres? If I had to make a guess... Brazil - Holland (Irmatov) Argentina - Germany (Archundia) Uruguay - Ghana (DeBleeckere) Spain - Paraguay (Batres)
Also, Nishimura gets the Brazil/Holland vs. Spain/Paraguay semifinal, with Kassai getting the other unless Ghana beats Uruguay (since he's already done a Ghana game).
I said it here after it happened, but busacca's red card was send home worthy because it showed that he lost situational awareness and sent off the host nations keeper wrongly. That is not politics, it just shows a lack of awareness needed by referees in that level. it may have passed quietly until coulliby screwed up and got publically blasted. I'm sure the anc referee chair-from mali-wanted blood in return for the red card vs rsa. I'm most sad for llaronda who I don't normally like but who came on strong. But cullibys ar's don't stay when he messes up, so it seems fair that the ref gets bounced if the ars also tank a major one.
FYI, although Al Ghamdi (Saudi Arabian Referee) has been kept, his SAR (Kamranifar of Iran) has been sent back home. This is because the AR was directly responsible for the red card Al Ghamdi gave to Switzerland's Behrami for the supposed elbow he threw against a Chile player. So, this is precedent that sometimes FIFA forgives and keeps a Referee even though his AR made a mistake, which does make sense to me.
Some comments on Busacca and FIFA in general... I think FIFA is doing a disservice to referees at all levels of the sport for not being more clear as to the reasons for referee dismissal, or for removing them from the list as the tournament progresses. Some of these officials, like Coulibaly, it's obvious why he was removed. Consider the case of Busacca, though, because there's a lot going on here if we assume he has been dismissed for the send-off to the South African keeper... This video is from 2006, Mexico-Argentina. Skip to the 4:10 mark, where right before halftime Gabriel Heinze gives the ball away in his own half, only to foul Francisco Fonseca: [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTLTclldCXs&feature=related"]YouTube- México vs Argentina (Alemania 2006)[/ame] Busacca gives a caution. A friend of mine received a series of clips from FIFA's Futura program, featuring incidents from Germany 2006. A clip would be shown, some options for referee action would be presented, and then the answer given. When I watched this live, I did not think this was DOGSO, agreeing with Bussaca (who clearly points to the other Argentine defender to indicate it's not red because another defender could have made a play). But the Futura video showed this very clip, and stated that Heinze should have been sent off for DOGSO. This was Busacca's last game in 2006. So consider Busacca's last World Cup may have ended because of his decision in a situation like this. This must be weighing on his mind when the incident occurs in the Uruguay-South Africa match. Much of the argument over the dismissal of the South African keeper has depended on whether the ball was within playing distance for Suarez and whether he was moving to goal. I don't want to re-open the debate as to whether it was a good send-off or not. What I want to know is if FIFA sent Busacca home because they feel this was an egregious error? Why does it matter? Because I want to know if it was the right call! One of the primary complaints about referees in the sport is lack of consistency. We all know that all of us can't all call the game in the exact same way, but I think it's fair to assume that everybody, including referees, want to try to get game-critical decisions consistently correct. If FIFA just sends Busacca home and doesn't say, "It's because of the send-off," then all we can do is speculate and discuss on this board what we think. And sadly, while it's fun, it ends up being nothing more than speculation. But if it was the reason, then this is a decision that we all should be aiming to get right. The media silence leaves us all in doubt, and that is not good for The Game. The dismissal of Larrionda and his crew is equally frustrating. I have defended that crew on that thread because they are following the orders decreed by our superiors, and were placed in a position where they apparently should have made a decision that they could not be confident was correct. Now, I'm not opposed to being asked to make this decision, but I would like to know if that's really what FIFA wants... when the system breaks down, are we supposed to go with our gut and take our best guess? When we give the goal, and the Germans surround us and say, "The ball wasn't over the line!" it's OK for us to day, "I believe it was. I know I can't say with 100% confidence, but this is the decision I am going with because it seems right." FIFA has said England should have been given a goal. This is not news to anybody. What I want to know is if Larrionda and his crew failed the match and are out of the tournament because of it. I want to know what they expected Larrionda to do, so I can be a better referee and help teach others to be a better referee. This is not a debate about whether an incident is a trip or incidental contact; this is a question of handling a match-critical event the right way. Even if FIFA comes out and says, "We expect the AR to see this from 14 yards up the touchline and make the correct judgment," that would be fine... at least I would know what their expectations are. Even if FIFA said, "It's tough luck, there's nothing they could have done differently, but clearly a goal was scored and not awarded," at least it would tell me that the crew did what they were supposed to do. Instead, we sit here and speculate that they were sent home, possibly for something they had no control over. We can banter all we want about goal line technology, or extra referees, or replay, or anything else for that matter about improving The Game. The best way for many of these problems fixed is to tell us (a) if these decisions were wrong; (b) why they were wrong; and (c) how the referee crew could have done something different to not make this "mistake" again. But until FIFA does this, then Sepp Blatter's "human element" baloney will only be magnified 10-fold, and The Game will not get better.
They hold him just as 4th official. Then they should send Ayroldi and Espinoza and leave Larrionda and Rosetti.....
Report that Batres has Paraguay-Spain: http://www.marca.com/2010/06/30/fut...447cd90d889645b041e67a0aed1bce67&t=1277936731 And it appears Carlos Simon has tweeted that Nishimura has Holland-Brazil: http://twitter.com/simonapito That likely means a European has the Ghana-Uruguay game. Saw a rumor it was Webb, which would be great news for him and might mean he has a real shot at the Final. I really hope Archundia has Argentina-Germany, but that might be politically untenable now. I hate to imagine what the alternative is at this point. It couldn't be Damon, could it?
I agree, but I would more like to see Archundia at the final match. I think it all depends on who will play at the final. S. American team vs. European team or Argentina - Brazil - Archundia I'm sure. I think they won't give Webb two finals in one year, and he will be on the next World Cup (there is no English referee at the moment that could go on WC 2014) - Atkinson, too old and Webb is number 1, Dean, too old and just premier referee.
Webb has Uruguay Ghana according to reports http://www.ovaciondigital.com.uy/10...ngles-para-el-partido-de-uruguay-contra-ghana urguayans terrified he might seek revenge for Larrionda's hash haha
I totally agree with you there. Busacca, undoubtedly, is one of the world's top referees on his day, but as you said can act erratically. Your first point about the Euro 08 documentary is spot on. Guys like Webb, Rosetti, Frojdfeldt and Vink all came off really well on that, but I got the impression that Busacca did think of himself as some kind of "God" and an attention seeker, and the way he spoke to Ivan Bebek, who was 4th official, didn't rub off too well either. And the second point is spot on, his gesture to the fan certainly will be in the back of FIFA's mind. The blown offside call by the AR in the Khune incident won't have helped, as AR calls have essentially led to Rosetti and Larrionda's dismissals. The moment the host nation's coach publicly blasted him, the wall was not only written on, but engraved on. I'm sure he knew then himself he was pretty much a gonner. And speaking of De Bleeckere, providing there is an Europe or all South American final, I think FIFA have him lined up for the final. I'd imagine Archundia, Webb & Batres and a couple of others will be in the mix, and maybe even Rodriguez, but De Bleeckere's had a good flowing tournament, and I see him as the man leading the teams out at Soccer City on July 11 at this moment.
If they don't go with Archundia and they choose to avoid South American and European referees, there is only one guy left I would like to see on that match: Irmatov. Problem is he has already had Argentina. Would they break tradition and give him the match anyway? I can't imagine him not having a single knockout round match after the strong performances he has put in and the Final may not be in the cards for him due to his age. This could be a spot for him...if the assignors break that policy (not sure they should, but every other referee scares me for this match). This would be a great spot for Mark Shield...or Matthew Breeze...too late to bring them in?
Well, there is one A-League referee hanging around that only has one match so far... Could you imagine?
NED - BRA - Nishimura PAR - SPA - Batres GER - ARG - Irmatov URU - GHA - Benquerenca I was right about Benquerenca, it's not Webb. - all confirmed
There are some rumours that Webb is getting the final match ??!! Have you heard sth like that, or it's just o rumour.
I suppose most referees that are left are in contention with a few exempt guys, but Webb has been one that has been pushed forward. Personally, I think De Bleeckere will get it, but we'll see.
Well, it almost has to be Archundia's Final now, right? I just remembered that De Bleeckere has done Dutch league matches in the past. He was brought in to do Feyenoord v. Ajax in 2007, I think, and he's done several other league games. In short, I don't think he'd be on a Netherlands match. Assuming Spain wins tonight, I'm tentatively thinking the lineups look like this (if the policy holds): Netherlands v. Uruguay - Damon (RSA) Germany v. Spain - De Bleeckere (BEL) FINAL - Archundia (MEX) I can't think of a scenario where Archundia doesn't fit the final. Maybe Spain v. Netherlands? That might necessitate a non-Spanish European referee, and give Webb his shot. Or, conversely, if Archundia is given Netherlands v. Uruguay (which is possible), then all bets are off.
I'm betting Damon or Maillet gets the 3rd place match, with a nod to the home continent. Irmatov seemed a bit lax on the challenges today, and I think that might cost him his chance at the Final. It didn't affect the game (having it spin out of control), but there were some hazy ones. Plus, the caution to Mueller for handling was inconsistent after he didn't book Di Maria earlier. I think Nishamura also kind of blew his chance by not dealing with Von Bommel's persistent infringement and when Alves kicked out at VB after the last foul. It seems like they wouldn't use a quarterfinal referee, but then again, they did in 2006. Figure they will use a UEFA in the (presumed) ESP-GER match; I would think Webb or De Bleeckere would be the likely choice. If not, one would think they would choose from Baldassi, Pozo (is he still on the list?), or Simon. None of those really jump out, however. Nonetheless, they did use a COMBEMOL referee for an all-UEFA final in 2006. NED-URU could be Archundia, but he seems like a logical choice to save for the Final in case it is a COMBEMOL-UEFA final. But I agree that Archundia has had a good tournament, and after doing the Italy-Germany semi in 2006, another semi would almost be a letdown for him with the way the teams have shaken out.