Goal famine implies changes are needed
Goal famine implies changes are needed
Paul Radford, Reuters, Yokohama, Japan
Asia's first World Cup promised to be a feast but there were slim
pickings for anyone who showed up late -- and the time is surely
ripe for some changes to brighten up the game.
The tournament began with a bang -- there were goals galore
and shocks aplenty in the opening group stage.
But it ended with a whimper and a goal famine in the knockout
phase. Just seven goals were scored in six quarterfinal and
semifinal matches.
That's not entertainment.
OK, so it did not stop 1.5 billion people around the globe
tuning in to watch Sunday's final on television. But it just may
be time FIFA looked at refining their 'product' to give it
lasting appeal.
Tinkering with the rules would involve breaking a few soccer
taboos but, if the game is to retain its popularity throughout
the 21st century, it needs to come up to date.
Here are some ideas which might work.
1. Stop the clock.
Who says it must be a game of two 45-minute halves? Less can
also be more. Cut the time to 30 minutes each way -- but stop the
clock whenever the ball is out of play, as they do in ice hockey
and some other sports.
Statistics at this World Cup show that the ball is in play for
between 42 and 63 minutes each match. Guarantee the fans an hour
of solid action and you would give them a better deal -- plus
more goals. Ten minutes each way for extra time too.
2. Video replays for key incidents.
FIFA and its president Sepp Blatter may shudder but it is
patently ridiculous that millions of people watching a game on
television know a goal has been wrongly awarded or disallowed and
that the only person who does not is the referee.
Give the poor ref a break and the technical help he needs. As
this World Cup has shown, one bad call can change the result of a
match and four years of hard work by a coach and his players. Ask
Italy and Spain.
It is far too important to let human error be a critical
factor. This need not stop the flow of play as critics claim
since the replay can be shown in a matter of seconds.
Restrict video replays to controversial goal incidents,
penalties and red card offenses only and it would rarely happen
more than once or twice a match anyway.
3. End the agony of penalty shootouts.
Every World Cup leaves behind players who must carry the
burden of guilt for destroying a nation's hopes just because they
missed a penalty.
Replace penalties with some collective action which would
eliminate what is really a form of torture. Five corners apiece
with five forwards against a goalkeeper and two defenders and 10
seconds to score might do the trick and would be far more fun
into the bargain.
4. End yellow card suspensions.
Michael Ballack of Germany missed the final this time as did
Italy's Alessandro Costacurta in 1994 and Claudio Caniggia of
Argentina in 1990, just because they picked up two yellow cards
on the way, often an arbitrary enough sanction anyway.
Make yellow card offenders serve their punishment in the match
they are playing in rather than pay in the future. In other
words, introduce a sin-bin as in ice hockey where yellow cards
could be absolved in 10 minutes off the pitch.
5. Ditch the golden goal.
The golden goal makes teams play too cautiously for fear of
conceding one and ending the game. Play to the end of extra time
and give the team which has gone behind a chance to come back and
win.
If the golden goal had existed in 1970, one of the greatest
games in World Cup history would have been little more than a
footnote.
Italy's thrilling 4-3 win over West Germany, with five goals
in extra time, would have been a 2-1 win to the Germans, who
scored first in extra time.