Mayhem after ref reverses red card call
It is often asked why football referees don’t put their hands up to admit a mistake.
As way of an explanation, here’s an example from Argentina that shows why it’s not wise for an official to reverse his decision.
The incident happened during Velez Sarsfield’s 2-1 win over Arsenal Sarandi.
The referee (and thought to be one of Argentina's best match officials) German Delfino showed Arsenal’s Rosero Valencia a second yellow for a handball offence. He also awarded Velez a penalty.
But it was actually the Velez attacker who handled the ball. So, there should not have been a sending-off, nor should there have been a penalty.
Delfino sensed something was amiss, a hunch confirmed by the fourth official. Delfino had made the wrong call.
So the referee took the honourable option — he "dis-awarded" the penalty and "cancelled" the red card.
Cue mayhem. Players surrounded the ref, the coaches joined in, as did some journalists. Then the police stepped in to quell the situation.
And even though Delfino made the right call, he is now being investigated and is facing a ban for using a television replay to make the call.
The Velez captain even did an on-pitch interview where he protested the use of replays to make decisions.
Maybe there’s a reason for referees to be stubborn after all.
Source: Mirror Online
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