Argentina 1-0 Nigeria | Maxi denied penalty for clash with Kaita

Description: Maxi Rodríguez turned inside the Nigerian penalty area. Kaita came in to challenge for the ball and both players went tumbling in a sea of arms & legs. The referee had none of it.

Date of Game: Saturday 12th June 2010

Home Team: Argentina | Away Team: Nigeria

Referee: Wolfgang Stark (GER) | Linesman: Jan-Hendrik Salver (GER) & Mike Pickel (GER)

Decision Type: Penalty | Verdict:

Decision Difficulty: 3/5 | Affect on result: 1/5 | Score: -4

Affect on Result: None, except it would have allowed Argentina to see the game out in a more relaxed fashion | Winner: Nigeria | Loser: Argentina

Players Involved: Maxi Rodríguez (Argentina) & Sani Kaita (Nigeria)

Summary: Kaita completely missed the ball when he came in to challenge, I think it actually went between his legs and then he tumbled, raised his arm and prevent Maxi from getting around him. For me, it was a definite penalty, despite what Mick McCarthy said on the BBC commentary.

View highlights & match summary of Argentina vs Nigeria on BBC

Cheers,
WB

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South Korea 2-0 Greece | Lee Chung-Yong denied penalty for clash with Torosidis

Description of incident: Early in the game, with South Korea already 1-0 up, Lee Chung-Yong powered into the Greek penalty area where there was a tangling of legs between him and Torosidis. Despite the claims for a penalty, the ref waved play on.

Date of Game: Saturday 12th June 2010

Home Team: South Korea | Away Team: Greece

Referee: Michael Hester (NZL) | Linesman: Jan-Hendrik Hintz (NZL) & Tevita Makasini (TGA)

Decision Type: Penalty | Verdict:

Decision Difficulty: 2/5 | Affect on result: 1/5 | Score: 3

Affect on Result: None really, only denying South Korea more comfort in this easy victory | Winner: Greece | Loser: South Korea

Players Involved: Lee Chung-Yong (South Korea) & Vasilios Torosidis (Greece)

Summary: There is some debate in this decision and I have seen many similar clashes result in a penalty however, I felt it was a genuine tangling of legs as Lee raised his foot to shoot. I do not feel Torosidis was stretching for the ball when the players clashed, he was simply tracking back.

View highlights & match summary of South Korea vs Greece on BBC

Cheers,
WB

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Uruguay 0-0 France | Henry's penalty shout for handball

Description of incident: Late in the game, a cross was swung into the Uruguayan penalty area where it fell to Henry. His shot bounced up and hit Victorino on the hand. The referee waved away Henry's loud penalty requests.

Date of Game: Friday 11th June 2010

Home Team: Uruguay | Away Team: France

Referee: Yuichi Nishimura (JPN) | Linesman: Toru Sagara (JPN) & Hae Sang Jeong (KOR)

Decision Type: Penalty | Verdict:

Decision Difficulty: 1/5 | Affect on result: 5/5 | Score: 6

Affect on Result: If a penalty had been given, it would almost definitely have given France the victory | Winner: Uruguay | Loser: France

Players Involved: Waldemar Victorino (Uruguay) & Thierry Henry (France)

Summary: Both of Victorino's hands were tucked in tight to his body. There is no was you could claim it was deliberate, he didn't gain control of the ball and it hit his body as well, which it would have hit even if his hand wasn't there. Definitely the right decision...despite the extremely loud calls to the contrary.

View highlights & match summary of Uruguay vs France on BBC

Cheers,
WB

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Uruguay 0-0 France | Lodeiro shown red card after two yellows

Description of incident: Lodeiro came on as a late substitute for Uruguay and within minutes was in the book for, apparently, throwing the ball away when France were awarded a free-kick. Minutes later he fouled Sagna which the referee decided was worthy of a second yellow and a red card.

Date of Game: Friday 11th June 2010

Home Team: Uruguay | Away Team: France

Referee: Yuichi Nishimura (JPN) | Linesman: Toru Sagara (JPN) & Hae Sang Jeong (KOR)

Decision Type: Red card | Verdict:

Decision Difficulty: 2/5 | Affect on result: 3/5 | Score: 5

Affect on Result: It prevented Uruguay from making a final push for victory | Winner: France | Loser: Uruguay

Players Involved: Nicolas Lodeiro (Uruguay) & Bacary Sagna (France)

Summary: The second yellow is indisputable; Lodeiro came in late, ankle high & studs first. The first however, was extremely harsh. Lodeiro was trotting away from where the free-kick had been given when he casually scooped the ball up with both hands and rolled it behind him without looking. It went roughly in the direction if where the free-kick was to be placed but wasn't what you'd call helpful. The reason I gave the verdict of a right decision was Lodeiro had no reason to touch the ball. In this day and age you are asking for a yellow. Plus, it could be argued that it should have been a straight red for his challenge on Sagna.

View highlights & match summary of Uruguay vs France on BBC

Cheers,
WB

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South Africa 1-1 Mexico | Modise denied penalty for clash with Rodriguez

Description of incident: Mexico were split right down the middle and Modise raced clear. Rodriguez tracked back and challenged Modise for the ball who went tumbling to the ground calling for a penalty.

Date of Game: Friday 11th June 2010

Home Team: South Africa | Away Team: Mexico

Referee: Ravshan Irmatov (UZB) | Linesman: Rafael Ilyasov (UZB) & Bahadyr Kochkarov (KGZ)

Decision Type: Penalty | Verdict:

Decision Difficulty: 2/5 | Affect on result: 5/5 | Score: 7

Affect on Result: If a penalty had been given, it would have most likely led to a 2-0 lead to South Africa, so this had a massive affect on the final score | Winner: Mexico | Loser: South Africa

Players Involved: Teko Modise (South Africa) & Francisco Rodriguez (Mexico)

Summary: For me, this was a fairly straight forward decision but I'm sure there are a lot of people that would disagree. I just think it was shoulder-to-shoulder and if that was a foul, it's a sad day for football as a contact sport.

View highlights & match summary of South Africa vs Mexico on BBC

Cheers,
WB

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South Africa 1-1 Mexico | Vela goal disallowed for offside

Description of incident: Mexico swung a corner into the South African box and Khune came flapping at the ball, missing by a mile. It fell for Carols Vela who bundled it into net.

Date of Game: Friday 11th June 2010

Home Team: South Africa | Away Team: Mexico

Referee: Ravshan Irmatov (UZB) | Linesman: Rafael Ilyasov (UZB) & Bahadyr Kochkarov (KGZ)

Decision Type: Offside | Verdict:

Decision Difficulty: 5/5 | Affect on result: 3/5 | Score: 8

Affect on Result: It was still relatively early in the game so it's hard to judge, but if I was a betting man I would have say Mexico would have been likely to run out winners if the goal had stood | Winner: South Africa | Loser: Mexico

Players Involved:  Carlos Vela (Mexico) & Itumeleng Khune (South Africa)

Summary: This was a really tough call so hats off to the linesman for getting this one spot on. As the South African goalkeeper came flying out in an attempt to claim the ball, Vela fell into an offside position because only one defender was on the line and he was now more advanced that Khune. It happened at such speed and is the type of incident often missed by officials. Top, top decision.

Update: Why was Carlos Vela's goal disallowed? Full explanation There seems to be some confusion over why this goal was disallowed, so I'd like to be 100% clear. The offside rule states that when the ball is played two defenders should be between the attacker and the goal. We often describe this as needing to be "level with the last man" as, invariably, the goalie will be the second "defender" between the attacker and the goal. Is this instance, the goalie was more advanced than Vela when the ball was played and therefore only one defender remained between him and the goal.

View highlights & match summary of South Africa vs Mexico on BBC

Cheers,
WB

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