It’s still a judgement call (in this case a poor one by the ref), but unless they give refs use of replay, how are they to “…take appropriate time to evaluate and analyze the situation prior to issuing the red card.”

So, they’re throwing their ref under the bus for issuing the red card, which while incorrect was less egregious than the PK call itself. A better response from the league would issue a suspension for diving.

Saban,

I agree with your assessment about the PK, and a suspension for diving, but instant replay is a bad idea in soccer, IMO.

The antidote is for the MLS to dismiss incompetent officials and pony up the cash for higher quality referees with broader FIFA experience.

If they are willing to say this, they should at least address the reasons that the diver isn’t suspended.

as for instant replay, I think it should be implemented, but only for determining whether or not the ball passes all the way through the goal mouth.

I agree completely. I think divers need multiple game suspensions. Diving is unfair, ugly, and negatively affects the image of soccer – especially in America where soccer is unfortunately still seen by many as a sport for women and kids.

I am with Saban. a suspension for the dive is the correct thing.

I understand wanting to clarify for other referees which is what the Week inReview is for, but I would love to see the league do what UEFA did with Eduardo.

Robert et al. I’m not advocatiing replay, I’m inidcating the inanity of the ’statement’.

You all missed the point. If they said that Torres “only” deserved a yellow, then they’re saying that the call for a foul was correct. The two go hand in hand, as the USSF would have made a statement if the entire play was incorrect.

US Soccer didn’t say it wasn’t a foul, just that a red card wasn’t warranted. For the sake of training refs, they assumed the foul. So I don’t think they’re throwing the ref under the bus.

In fact, by not treating the “foul” separately, they seem to be sticking by the PK call and just saying that the ref only erred in judgment between yellow and red cards. Thus, no suspension for diving. Which is ridiculous. This would have been a good opportunity to discuss the fact that going down multiple steps after incidental contact is not a foul. Or a PK. Or a card.

Agreed that US Soccer needs to demand better from its refs or find new refs. Too many bad calls (like the PK and red card last Saturday) directly affect the outcome of games across MLS. That and I’m tired of seeing seat-belt soccer (i.e. clutch and grab) and ultra-physical play go unpunished (see Dyanmo, Houston on both counts).

Jason apparently you failed to read the complete article and missed this:

“Note: The focus of this clip is the potential DOGSO event and not whether a foul actual exists. Hence, when viewing the clip, assume that the defending team has committed a foul. ”

You missed the point. The article is specifically on the topic of Red card no red card and both examples only talk about whether the red card was warranted or not.

Guys…the USSF doesn’t issue suspensions for MLS games…the league does.

As for the idea of “Better paid” referees to solve the problem, do I need to remind you that horrible missed calls exist in EVERY league at EVERY level and even happen at the World Cup?? Refeering is not a perfect science…even the best miss calls. The standard of never missing a call is impossible, and you will never be statisfied.

^^^^^^
While this is true, the league does have the capability to reviews such issues. While they can’t overturn the final outcome of the match, the league can correct an error to an individual player that was wronged by lifting his suspension/fine that was erroneously implemented in the first place.

I stand by my original statement.

I’m calling out how the league handled the matter. This involves how they handled Torres, Quanranta, and the ref.

They had decisions to make regarding each. They absolved Torres of the red correctly, and punted on Quaranta & threw the ref under the bus with the weak statement,

“…take appropriate time to evaluate and analyze the situation prior to issuing the red card.”

What’s a ref to do, hold a seance? Poll the fans? Flip a coin? Seek inner peace?

The most he can do is ask the lineman. What if after calling the fould and pointing to the spot, he consults with the linesman about issuing a red card, and the linesman says “It shouldn’t be a PK”.?

Refs can’t/won’t do that.

saban…

I had no idea the league absolved Torres of the red card. Where did you find this information as I can’t find it anywhere?

I meant absolved of blame if not in consequence. And sorry, I missed that this was USSF finding not league. Mea culpa.

US Soccer governs the referees, not MLS. They cannot suspend the player for diving. only MLS can do that. They can, however, suspend the referee for making a poor decision.

guess who got cautioned for diving this weekend?