Rebuttal to "Is it Time For Instant Replay"
The goal of soccer training is improved performance, injury prevention, soccer skills and tactics. Improved performance should never come at the cost of an injured player. Goal #1 is injury prevention in a soccer conditioning program. Goal #2 is to improve performance.
by Robert Rixer
I agree that technology should be used more in the world game but instant replays during the game is not the answer. Unlike American football, basketball or baseball, soccer is a continuous game. It's too complicated to implement it into a game situation. If your 'red flag' method is used, the game would have to be stopped (or wait for the ball to go out) before a play can be reviewed.
Say for instance a defending player blocks a certain goal with his hand and the ball ricochets out into open play but the ref misses it and waves play on. The furious attacking coach throws his red flag in the air. The ref cannot stop open play unless there is a foul, offiside or a head injury! So we must wait for the ball to go out before reviewing the play. Now what if the team who survived the handball scare kept possession for a solid 5 minutes (like an Argentina or a Spain) and then scored a goal at the end of it. The penalty claim from before would be finally reviewed and would they bring the play all the way back to the penalty?
Now I know you're probably thinking that the fourth official would review the play the second the flag goes up (whilst the play goes on). This takes time, maybe even up to a minute before a conclusive answer is found. What happens if, during this time, a goal is scored or a red card is given for a leg breaking tackle? Does the ejected player get to come back on, whilst the other team suffers an injured player.
The fact is, whilst replays is a good idea and would work wonders in some situations (like the US Slovenia game) it does not cover everything. And you cannot have these inconsistencies in the game. It can also get very complicated with certain situations like the one above. Trust me, if it was an easy solution, FIFA would have implemented it ages ago.
Now for those that say replays should be used after every goal just to make sure it is legit (like the infamous hand of henry), I say it is not good for the game. Imagine breaking the line of defence and smashing the ball into the top corner in the world cup final. You would want to go crazy and celebrate with your teammates. But if every goal is reviewed, you'd have to hold your breath and wait to get given the all clear. By the time you get the all clear, the moment is gone and you probably would look like an idiot to rip off your shirt and jump the fence into the crowd. Bottom line, it takes a special something away from our game.
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