I can't believe it

No way ! It doesn't deserve a penalty... Sad to see australia been kicked out

an email from an italian friend: "that's how we're going to win the championship...a robbery of a penalty in the 94th minute"

if the italians can admit the call was bs, so can I.

That was yet another pathetic friggin' call from these incompetent referees... The refs have absolutely ruined the tournament of 2006. But, I have a serious question: why is men's soccer so rife with melodramatic dives, fake injuries, and endless whining? That's NOT the way soccer is meant to be played. I hate it.

I beg to differ again. At any other time in the game, that penalty would have seemed far less questionable, and would not have elicited the response it did.

Could Grosso have jumped over the defender, or raised his leg not to trip on him? Most likely - it would have taken some momentum away from his run, but he could have remained on his feet. Did he have to? Of course not. The Aussie defender was late, missed the ball entirely and clearly hampered Grosso's progress in the box. It would have been crazy for Grosso to go on and try to score from that angle, when he could get an easy penalty. If he had tried to stay up and Italy had lost the game in overtime, it would have been unforgivable. It was certainly not very sportsmanlike (in the abstract "de Coubertainian" sense of the term), but something any player would, or should, have done. Bad luck for Australia? Absolutely.

What is nuts is that blaming the refs has become the real sport. The red card for Materazzi earlier on was also argued against but understandable - despite the fact that his cleats weren't even close to the Aussie player, and that he wasn't even half as late on the ball as Mastroeni was when he was ejected against Italy (although everyone in the US protested that call). Still, he was arguably the last man on Bresciano (Zambrotta was on the outside and Bresciano could have left him behind) and the red card was a reasonable decision. (Another good call that got a lot of unjust flak was the no-off-side call that favored the Swiss against the South Koreans a few days ago - the ref was right there too in my opinion.)

The refs have a tough job and make decisions in a split sec. Sometimes they lose it, like the Russian ref in Portugal-Netherlands, or just blow a very obvious call, but in most cases it's not that hard to see things their way, especially if you know the game a bit.

This is just a compensation for Italy loss in WC'2002. Who was Korean coach that time? - that's right: G.Hiddink. And yes - ref. mistakes made Korea through.

It was certainly not very sportsmanlike (in the abstract "de Coubertainian" sense of the term), but something any player would, or should, have done. Bad luck for Australia? Absolutely.
Something any player would or should do? Are you kidding me?

The Aussie defender was late, missed the ball entirely and clearly hampered Grosso's progress in the box. It would have been crazy for Grosso to go on and try to score from that angle, when he could get an easy penalty. If he had tried to stay up and Italy had lost the game in overtime, it would have been unforgivable. It was certainly not very sportsmanlike (in the abstract "de Coubertainian" sense of the term), but something any player would, or should, have done.

I agree. Still it does leave a bad taste. Also if there were such a thing as instant replays to decide fouls-resulting-in-penalties, somehow I think that the whole game would be (or feel?) fairer. But what do I know.

This is just a compensation for Italy loss in WC'2002. Who was Korean coach that time? - that's right: G.Hiddink. And yes - ref. mistakes made Korea through.

Ha! I hadn't thought of that.

"Something any player would or should do? Are you kidding me?"
Not at all. Any player worth his or her salt would do that, and one who wouldn't could well cost his/her team the game, and wouldn't be on any professional (let alone national) team for long.

As I said, Grosso clearly didn't dive, he simply did not go out of his way (assuming he could, as I believe he did) to avoid being fouled in the penalty box when he knew he had very little chance to score if he kept going, and a decent chance at a penalty and at winning the game if he got fouled.

Look, I am sorry for the Australians, they really were unlucky and could have pulled off the upset deservedly, but I think it was a no brainer, and the right call by both Grosso and the ref.

Grosso clearly DID dive. I'll say it again--he clearly DID dive. And if you think he didn't, you're either blind or...well..not a player. You yourself stated that the play would NOT likely be as "questionable" in any other time in the game, implying that in the right context (this one), it was questionable. Yes, I agree. The dive was questionable, and would have been questionable at ANY time in the game, including this one. What was NOT questionable however, is a what a fantastic job Grosso did of pulling off the fake foul. The Aussie defender may have been a little late in his tackle, but he HARDLY "hampered Grosso's progress in the box". The defender BARELY touched him, and Grosso pulled yet another stupid fake dive that is so ridiculous and rampant in men's soccer. Moreover, I disagree that any player worth his or her salt would do the same in the same situation (most great soccer player's I know would certainly not dive in order to win a game in the 94th minute). It's incredibly chickenshit to stoop so low as to CHEAT in order to win a game, period. You say it would be "crazy" for any player in the same situation not to do so. I say it would be incredibly shameful to win a game in such a deceitful way, a win that is not earned. This dishonest play is corrupting the game, and the spectator's desensitation to (no, expectation of) such dishonest play contributes to the corruption.

BB: I think you have a much more idealistic view of soccer, or for that matter of any professional sport, than is practical.

The fact is, when you are playing as a professional you take advantage of the situations you are given - as long as you are not diving (going down on your own), there is nothing wrong in a) searching the foul, b) accentuating the foul so that the ref is unlikely to let it pass. This is equivalent to, say, drawing a foul in basketball or going along with a non-existent pass interference call in American football. You don't fake, but otherwise you just do what it takes.

As for Grosso having been "BARELY touched", you may want to look at the sequence again: the Australian player was lying, half seated, between his legs, and Grosso's rear leg clearly made contact. That's not even an issue. The question is whether Grosso could have lifted his left leg, or changed direction to his right, to avoid contact. I hear people arguing that he couldn't, because his left foot got trapped under the Aussie (I am not sure that's the case from the pictures I have seen), but even if that was not the case, it was not Grosso's job to go out of his way not to get fouled in the box, and it would have been stupid of him to do so.

The penalty would have seemed less questionable at any other time simply because it would not have been so obviously decisive. I am not saying that 100% of refs would call that a penalty foul 100% of the time, but that it was definitely not outlandish to call it, in fact a rather standard penalty. If it weren't, it would make it acceptable for any player to simply lie down in front of a charging opponent once the ball is past them, and hope they would have to change their momentum or trip.

That said, the Australians have the right to feel robbed - they were clearly in control of the game at that point. But they were robbed by fate, not Grosso or the ref.

Today's NY Times World Cup headline: Blatter and the Fakers Deserve Red Cards

And from another article:

For Hiddink, a Dutchman with a habit of working miracles with underdog teams, the penalty seemed Italy's revenge for that game. Hiddink was the coach of South Korea in 2002, and that disputed call against Totti left the Italians short a player. That day it was the Koreans who got the late goal, and the victory. On Monday it was Italy, and Totti, who advanced.

Andrea,
I guess we'll agree to disagree on this. I'm sorry, but I find your arguments on the verge of comical. Regrettably, I'll just have to bow out of this discussion and move on. It's excessively frustrating for me to try and explain how the game should be played to someone who defends cowardly, dishonest play. Idealistic? Possibly, considering the state of elite men's soccer today.

BTW, you certainly don't have to explain to me what "drawing a foul" is, since I've drawn many in my time WITHOUT cheating. But, to suggest that going in hard to "draw a foul" and egregiously "diving" to PRETEND that you are fouled are one in the same act is absolutely the most ridiculous thing I've heard in a long time. And to suggest that the latter is not only accepted, but expected, is blashphemy to those of us who respect and love the game, (although, unfortunately, it is probably too very true).

With that said, how about that Ghana team. I suspect we'll be seing a lot more from them in the future.

All this talk of Italy, what about the Brazil/Ghana and France/Spain games?

Too bad Ghana could not score, they played well. And the other game, one word ... Zizou!

Yes it's a shame that Ghana had to face Brazil. And too bad about that Ghanian header that landed on Dida's (Brazilian goalie) foot. Ghana played very well, maybe next time.

As for Spain/France ... Spain is just cursed. They had only two nice chances - the French defence is too experienced for Spain's young strikers. Torres never looked dangerous. And Spain's defence was not up to par. Spain did have a bad call against them, but the great efforts by Ribery (or "scarface" ... what a great player he is!) and Zidane made the difference.

BTW I've read a lot on this Ribery - quite a character. I'll have to write something on him.

Alas, Spain is eliminated. My heart is crushed. I'm glad for Zizou though, and hope that he can end his career on a very high note. Also, after the racial abuse that the French team has suffered in Germany, I hope they'll put their hosts to shame. I hope Aragones has learned a lesson too.

Andrea - Are you trying to say that if one day I just bump into you, then you'll be at fault because that's exactly what happened for the penalty. The Italian ran straight into Neil and fell over.

By the way, did you notice Totti running towards Grosso and pushing him back down when the former tried to get on his feet? You know what? With the Italian League so messed up, it's no surprises that the national team is as messed up.

Andrea - Are you trying to say that if one day I just bump into you, then you'll be at fault because that's exactly what happened for the penalty. The Italian ran straight into Neil and fell over.

Yikes. Still arguing about this? Check out this replay from behind the action:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=k2PgG8j0gyQ&mode=related&search=italy%20aust…

Could Grosso have avoided Neil? Maybe, but it would have required some gymnastics, swerving very quickly to the right or jumping over him and landing somehow on the other side. Did Gross have to? No. Did he dive? No - there was obvious contact, sufficient to make him fall (whether or not Gross looked for contact or not).

It doesn't matter that Neil most likely didn't want to hit him or hamper his progress, that's not how this kind of fouls is called (as opposed to, say, handballs): if you try a sliding tackle, completely miss the ball,lie down in the path of the other player and he falls over you, it's a foul anywhere on the field.

As for Totti allegedly pushing Grosso down, first of all the first player to get there is Iaquinta, not Totti. Second, it was long after the ref had already called the penalty (which he did immediately), so even if true it would not have made any difference whatsoever. Third, I am not sure that's even what happened, since it seems that Grosso was still on the ground and the other player just fell on top of him to hug him, at least from what I can see from this video, with bonus hilarious Chinese commentary.
http://www.corriere.it/Primo_Piano/Sport/2006/06_Giugno/30/pop_cinese.s…

But hey, guys, if the idea of sleazy, cheating Italians rocks your boat, be my guests. Italy is in the semis, anyway. ;-)

Anrea,

Yeah it looks like Neil grabbed his foot. Maybe the ref was right after all.

yes but what about this evidence!! ;)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcCw9RHI5mc

and this:
http://www.recordonline.com/archive/2006/06/29/sports-soccerdivecolumn-…

I don't see the foot holding, but I'm not so convinced he took a deliberate dive. Neil's hand may have grazed his foot, but barely. Looks to me as if Neil was just in the way, and Grosso, in an effort not to step on him and still chase after the ball, lost his balance. But it all depends on the speed at which this is all happening.

BB,

I totally agree with the Guardian article you linked to:

A player who is barely touched launches himself at the ground, feigns injury and tries to con the referee into a penalty kick or free kick. Often times, he is carried off on a stretcher, at which point he takes a swig of water, brushes off his shorts and rejoins the game at full speed. It has been going on for decades, and it is still just as wrong.

It is also the reason many American sports fans say they refuse to embrace the sport (though they didn't let flopping Bill Laimbeer spoil their love for basketball). They're used to football and hockey players smashing into each other, and sneer at soccer players in colorful shorts stumbling when a nearby player sneezes.

...

There have been murmurs of instant replay and of maybe adding another official on the field. Why not do what the NFL does? Let each team have a certain number of instant replay challenges.

Soccer purists refuse to imagine adding stoppage to their fluid game. But every one of those dives is a stoppage, isn't it? Maybe the game would flow even better if a player wasn't rolling on the ground every five minutes.

Yes, they need to consider this. Plus with the 250 cameras around the pitch, they can pick up the foul almost instantly. We as TV viewers can often make better calls than the refs - why not have one extra ref watch TV?

Andrea - You're right! Italy's in the semis, end of story. What's happened, has happened and well, I guess it's just part of the game. Good luck anyway.

Apalazzo - You know what? The technology of the refs communicating with electronic ear pieces and microphones was there for years but it's only now, in 2006, that FIFA has accepted to integrate this. So getting another ref watching some tv is a great idea, but will Blatter accept? I don't think so. Maybe he's much more interested in booking players for mundane stuff... like the refs are doing in this world cup, anyway..

After watching the videos on Grosso and Neil again, I change my mind. Grosso has an unmistakable smirk on his face after falling -- he looks like he's about to burst into laughter and that's probably why he keeps his head to the ground.