Completely agree with Bath's take on having a post game panel for diving with bans varying according to the gain made from cheating. I find it remarkable that given the huge swathes of cash rolling around the PL with decisions being so vital to positions and promotion and relegation that every goal given has a quick video replay to check that it is OK - no offside/handball or foul in the build-up. There would be very little time added on as the game has stopped either way and would restart either via the centre circle if the goal stands or with a free kick if there has been an infringement. I would have no issue with this being done on straight red card decisions as well if the ref is unsure.
I dislike Suarez as much as the next person, but I think in this case you have to blame the officials. Yes, his arm went out and punched the ball over the line, but that was probably more instinct than anything else. As Redruth said, the way he blasted the ball into the back of the net and then looked over to the linesman makes me think he was expecting the goal to be ruled out, bu it wasn't so he celebrated in the same way he always does, which unfortunately was by kissing the wrist of the hand he'd just punched the ball into the net with. Should he have owned up? In this case, no I don't think he should. If there had been a bit of pinball going on in the box and it hit his hand and went in then yes, you'd expect him to hold his hands up (excuse the pun) and admit it, but in this case it was blatant for everyone to see what had happened so there was really no need for him to say 'I handled it' because it was obvious. The officials are really the ones to blame due to their complete incompetence. By all accounts Liverpool got the rub of the green with most decisions, this being the most obvious. It would be interesting to see the reaction if it had been anyone else on the pitch, Joe Allen for example, instead of Suarez. Would Allen have been accused of being a blatant cheat and an embarrassment to Liverpool FC, or would the officials have got it in the neck instead, as they rightly should have done.
I'm pretty sure that any referee at the highest level only gives a red card if he is sure! When it later transpires that he was wrong, I'm sure that he is as surprised as anyone! When you have a split second to view something, the brain can play a trick on you by presenting you with what you thought you saw, rather than what you actually saw!
Wheres the roving "Don't you dare say anything bad about Suarez" scousers? Theres usually one or two that scout around just in case...
If it was any other player on that pitch everyone would be lambasting the referee rather than the player. But because it's Suarez....
Kevin Friend who is the worst ever referee in the history of the game had another shocker last night when he did the Everton v Cheltenham game. He didn't give Cheltenham anything and during the game he was laughing and joking with the Everton players and calling them by their nicknames! He called the Cheltenham players by the numbers on their shirts! He showed complete bias. This guy should never be given any more professional football matches as he always favours one team over the other.
