Because there’s still a chance that Houston Dynamo FC could make it to the MLS Cup final (unlike the Galaxy this year, thankfully). GO SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
But, just sad to see LAFC going to Luchi-level bunkering after they scored the goal in the 30th minute. And watching a Seattle home game with those uniforms on that fake turf with the barely washed out gridiron lines is not very visually appealing.
The turf looked particularly awful last night. It's such an unnatural fake green color and then also very patchy looking. Starting to hear more rumblings from NFL players about doing away with turf, so maybe there's some hope.
I didn’t see a good replay that shows it - was the hand in a natural position hanging at the side of his body or was it in a position to “make his body unnaturally bigger”. To me it looked like it could be the former but again I didn’t see a definitive replay.
Not that I really care about Houston , LAFC or anyone else for that matter, but if the Quakes could win an MLS Cup by playing boring ,bunkering Luchi ball, I’d be ecstatic. Viva il catenaccio!
Good ol' Lex I’m a proud registered Republican in the great State of California…which I guess right now makes me kind of a unicorn. https://t.co/JzPbgDlATd— Alexi Lalas (@AlexiLalas) November 27, 2023
When viewed from behind the goal, it appears to me the player definitely raised his arm to block the shot. https://www.mlssoccer.com/news/sporting-kc-lament-handball-no-call-there-s-no-doubt-in-my-mind
To me it looks like he actually draws his arms into his body as the shot approaches. When the shot hits him, his arms are to his side in a fairly natural way. Sure he could put his arms behind his back or push them into his body like he's standing at attention, but I don't think those are requirements. This is where his arms are as the ball is approaching... And this is just before the ball makes contact with his body. His arms were more dangling away from his body as he set his position and got his balance, then as the shot approached he drew them in towards his body. If you compare to the previous screenshot you can see how he draws his arms in. I suppose one can make the argument that he didn't draw in his arms far enough, especially the left arm, but to me it's a borderline call at best.
In other words, if it was a Quake taking the shot it should be a handball, if it was a Quake on defense it was not a handball.
His arms were up as he settled into position, before the shot. That’s perfectly legal. Then as his feet settled he brought his arms in towards his body. As to whether they were in a reasonably natural position when the ball hit him, I think that’s debatable. It's not like standing at attention pinned to the side of his body, but not extended out from his body to any large degree either. There's another angle we need to see, which is directly behind him, so that we can see how much the separation of his arms to his body is due to his arm being a little behind his body vs. extended outward from his body. If his arm is a little behind his body but not extended away form it, possible explanations are that he's in the process of bringing it behind his back or that the ball hit his arm and there's a little movement due to the force. I think if that angle is not available, you have to leave the call on the field.
Didn't Daniel get a red for much less egregious handling? There are apparently rumors about upcoming revisions to the handling rules to incorporate "intent" and "deliberate" -- seems way too subjective to me. Or rather, how likely are players to admit that they deliberately played the ball with their arm? But I am also not a fan of "natural position" since the only way players can be sure to avoid handling under that definition is to put their arms behind their backs -- definitely not a natural position. What's natural for a player who is jumping or falling? The only reasonable argument I've seen for not giving a red/PK in that game was the lack of decent photos from the best angle. But from all the photos and video I've seen, if that wasn't handling, the bar for handling must be a whole lot higher than we've seen it called.