The United States under Mauricio Pochettino was preparing for a gameplan against Belgium that was not going to feature their star striker, Folarin Balogun, but on Sunday, FIFA flipped the script. The red card suspension that Balogun was given against Bosnia was rescinded.
FIFA Makes an Extraordinary Decision to Allow Folarin Balogun To Return To The Field
There was much criticism leveled as to why Balogun was awarded a red card for his tackle against Bosnia, as reported by Fox Sports, “under FIFA‘s own protocols, the play should not have been flagged to Brazilian referee Raphael Claus by the video assistant, who asked Claus to review the play on the monitor following a slow-motion replay of the incident. Balogun was not even cautioned by Claus on the field.”
Thus, it was the unilateral decision by FIFA that the rules were applied wrongly on the field, and thus the red card suspension (but technically not the card itself) should be annulled. That means a day before the match, Balogun, who had “accepted the decision” of the ref, will be back on the field in Seattle.
This is an exceptionally rare action by FIFA.
What This Means for the US MNT
Balogun has scored three goals this World Cup, he’s the leading scorer for the stars and stripes and pivotal to their attack, that also includes Christian Pulisic. Pochettino will find life much easier with Balogun as the spear of the attack against Belgium’s defence, including the experienced goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.
This is a confidence boost ahead of what is expected to be a highly competitive clash with Belgium. 12 years ago, the Red Devils eliminated the United States from the World Cup.
The Integrity of the Game Continues To Be Debated This World Cup
While there is plenty of evidence that Balogun’s foul was not intentional, and that VAR was misused in the Bosnia game, with the US going down to 10 men in the second half, this decision by FIFA will only fuel the debate about the integrity of the international game. VAR has been used heavily in a highly technical manner this World Cup.
Colombia had a match winning goal in extra time ruled offsides against Portugal by the length of Davinson Sanchez’s toes
Croatia were eliminated by Portugal in the round of 32, a match tying goal was annulled due to the technology inside the Adidas Trionda detecting a touch, the goal was ruled offsides.
Lionel Messi appeared to press his cleat against the calf of Algeria’s Aissa Mandi in the group stage, but he wasn’t given a card at all.
Against England, Ghana believed they had a clear penalty shout that was not called. “I’m not sure VAR is still working in the World Cup. We still have VAR? It’s working?” said Ghana manager Carlos Queiroz.
Against both Germany and France in the knockout stage, Paraguay’s defence committed a series of cynical fouls that were not sanctioned.
Last November, Cristiano Ronaldo was handed a three-match ban for “violent conduct” but that was suspended and he’s featured for the entirety of the World Cup.
These are all serious decisions, impacting the outcomes of knockout stage games, group stage standings, historical records. The return of Balogun will measurably boost the chances that the hosts United States will advance to the last 8 of the World Cup, with more than 30 million Americans watching on.
