Rio De Janeiro: FIFA rejected Brazil’s request to allow suspended captain Thiago Silva to face Germany in the World Cup semifinals and hit back at claims referees had been ordered to take a lenient approach to foul play.
A statement from FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee dismissed Brazil’s plea for Silva out of hand, stating there was “no legal basis” for the defender’s yellow card against Colombia to be rescinded.
In a further snub, FIFA disciplinary chiefs also ignored the growing clamour in Brazil for Colombian defender Juan Camilo Zuniga to face retroactive punishment over the aerial challenge that ended Neymar’s tournament.
The statement said the committee “deeply regrets the incident and the serious consequences on Neymar’s health”.
But Zuniga could not be punished because the incident in Friday’s stormy quarterfinal had been seen by the match officials at the time, a statement said.
Disciplinary action could only be applied retroactively in cases of mistaken identity where a referee shows a yellow or red card to the wrong player.
The statement emphasised that even though Neymar had suffered a serious injury in the incident – a fractured vertebrae – it could not have a bearing on how Zuniga’s case should be handled.
Zuniga has apologised for the tackle and insists he had not intended to cause Neymar injury. Silva, for his part, has branded the Colombian a “coward” for the challenge.
The incident late in Friday’s clash in Fortaleza has become the focal point of anger directed at match officials.
Several commentators have criticised the performance of Spanish referee Carlos Velasco Carballo, saying he allowed a climate of physicality to escalate, culminating in Neymar’s injury, by failing to sanction players on both sides with yellow cards earlier in the game.
Carballo’s performance comes after a sharp fall in the number of yellow cards issued during this year’s World Cup.
A German newspaper alleged FIFA referees chief Massimo Busacca had told officials to limit cards in order to make the tournament more attractive.
But FIFA took issue with the report, branding it “unacceptable”. (AFP)
