If there’s one competition that can challenge CONCACAF for zaniness, it’s the Europa League. Week after week we tune in because we know something crazy will happen. Thursday was no exception as the referees missed a blatant hand ball on the goal line in the match between Hapoel Be’er Sheva and Steaua Bucharest in Romania.
In the 52nd minute of a 1-1 game, Steaua Bucharest’s Constantin Budescu dribbled past the opposing keeper and fired toward goal. The ball was headed for the back of the net only for Dor Elo to raise his arm to block the shot. The ball bounced off his wrist in a manner that would not have occurred had it hit his nearby abdomen.
Elo had clear intention and denied an obvious goal. Steaua should have been awarded a penalty kick and Elo should have been sent off. The referee was about 10 yards away. The additional end-line referee was even closer. Neither saw the infraction and that’s the Europa League for you.
UEFA club competitions have the additional assistant referees (AAR) on both end lines just for situations like this, to put extra eyes on the pitch in the 18, where soccer lives. But when two officials (not to mention the assistant referee who wasn’t much further away and perhaps had the best view of anyone) miss such a seemingly blatant call, you start to question the validity of it all.
I’m not going to criticize Elo here for saving a goal. Like Luis Suarez in the 2010 World Cup, it was a smart move, although given the amount of time left in the match it could easily have backfired had the referees spotted it. In fact, I’m not even going to criticize his laughable attempts at pretending the ball hit him in the face.
If you watch the video closely, upon realizing the referees didn’t immediately spot his handling of the ball, Elo decides to act like the ball hit him first in the chest and later in the face. A few moments later, Elo is spotted on the turf, hands over his face, 8 yards away from where he got hit. Budescu is not impressed.
When referees are that incompetent, it’s hard to blame the players for trying to get away with anything from biting to handling.
The actions of Elo proved to be match saving for Hapoel Be’er, which picked up a vital point against the Group H leader by holding on for the 1-1 draw. Steaua had won its first three Europa League matches but remained in first place with 10 points followed by Viktoria Plzen on six, Hapoel Be’er at four and FC Lugano with three points. Fortunately for Steaua, the point was enough to ensure qualification to the Round of 32, where they’ll hope they get a little more help from the referees.
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