Today’s quarterfinal matchup between Ghana and Uruguay produced the most interested end to a World Cup game this year.
To recap what happened, there was less than 15 seconds left in the game, and Ghana had one last free kick before the game went into a penalty shootout. There was a resulting scramble in the box, with many shots/headers on goal. At the end, a header went on goal and was finally deliberately blocked with the hands of Luis Suarez. He was given a red card and will miss the next game. Had he not blocked it with his hands, it was a sure goal. Ghana was given a penalty shot, but it was then missed. Ghana went on to lose in the shootout.
A lot of people have been criticizing Suarez for cheating and many people have called for a ban or what not. A lot of people have even compared him to Thierry Henry, and his cheating incident by scoring a goal with his hand.
Do I have any problem with what Suarez did? No. On the contrary, I applaud him for what he did. He knew what the rules were, and he decided to play by them with the whole world to see. He knew that if he used his hands in the box, he would get a red card and a suspension for the next game. He knew that he would give up a resulting penalty kick where Ghana could still win. He knew too that this was the only way to give his team a chance at survival. He took one for his country, and his gambled paid off after Ghana missed the resulting penalty kick.
This happens all the time in American sports. In basketball, when a player is on a fast break and has an easy path to the basket, he sometimes intentionally fouled so that he doesnt get these “free points”. The fouled player then just gets to shoot 2 free throws as a result. In hockey, when a player is on a breakaway, he is often times tripped up as a last resort to save a goal. This player is then awarded a penalty shot. In football, if a receiver has a clear shot at the ball and the defender is beat, the defender will purposefully foul the receiver. The defender will then be called for a pass interference penalty and his team is at a disadvantage.
In all these cases, the defender purposefully sacrifices himself for the team so that the other team doesnt get an easy or sure score. In all situations, the defender knows that there will be retribution of some type, whether that be free throws, penalty shot, or field position. But in each case, he knows that these none of these are “gimme points.” He knows that free throws or a penalty shot can be missed. He knows that better field position might not lead to points. Its a gamble that the player is willing to take.
Now back to Suarez, he did the exact same thing. He sacrificed himself, and everything worked out perfectly. Suarez did something wrong. He was caught. A penalty kick was given, Ghana couldnt capitalize, and there’s no controversy what so ever.
However, I guarantee you things would have been a lot different had the referees not called the penalty and given the red card. All hell would have broken loose, and Suarez would have been vilified by the entire world for cheating. Im actually scared to imagine what would have happened had the refs not seen the handball.
Did he cheat? I would say no. Again, I applaud him tremendously for what he did. If he wasnt caught, would I have a problem with the situation? Yes, but not because of what he did, but because of the inadequacies of the refereering that didnt spot the penalty to begin with.
What do you think?
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