Mario Balotelli: How Suspension Makes a Strong Case for Replay in Football

In the wake of the thrilling finale to Manchester City's 3-2 victory over Tottenham, the outrage of Spurs fans at both Mario Balotelli and Howard Webb became the top storyline of the match.

Balotelli's actions towards Scott Parker (back-heeling him in the side of the head and attempting to stomp on him) were atrocious and clearly warranted a straight red card. How referee Howard Webb missed the infraction from mere yards away and his eyes pointed towards the action is astounding.

The fact that Balotelli went on to win and score the stoppage time penalty that proved the decisive score in the match just poured gasoline onto the outrage at the missed call.

In an attempt to quell the disgust at the way the match unfolded, the FA took the swiftest of actions in dishing out a four-match suspension to Balotelli yesterday.

On one hand, one can look at this action as justice being served on a despicable play. On the other hand, how does this change things for Tottenham?

This suspension confirms the claims that they were defeated on a goal by a player that had no business being on the field.

Now, I am not being a biased Spurs supporter here; I do not believe the missed call was the main reason Tottenham lost the match (see my other article). However, it certainly affected the outcome, and as a football fan, I tired of seeing such plays happen. So what should have been done to amend the situation?

I reject the assertion that this is a problem with Howard Webb. Sure, Webb has proven himself blind with this incident and Nigel de Jong's World Cup Final boot. However, I have seen similar problems every week in the EPL.

I certainly do not believe the FA should be given the power to retroactively make a refereeing decision and change the result of the match, as I have seen some suggest.

Adding an extra official has been an experiment in Europe that has not seemed to have an overly positive effect; adding even more officials would clutter the game while leaving the human error intact.

In my opinion, the best option is the one FIFA is most resistant to: replay.  

The game is so fast today that one can hardly blame referees for some of their errors.  Look at this last Balotelli incident.  In real time, I was fairly sure the incident was one big accident (I reserved some judgment because it was Balotelli).

 In slow motion replay, the intent is clear.  Of course, Webb should have done better, but the quickness of the motion made it a very tough call.  Wouldn't it have been grand to allow Webb a second chance to see that move and get a better look?

I understand concerns about the institution of replay.  The corruption of the free-flowing game is obviously a worry.  I, for one, certainly do not want the matches to be stopped every few moments. However, I believe that a good policy could overcome such concerns.

Look at the replay policy in American football.  Each coach is given two challenges each half and can use them at their discretion.  Now, I know that American football lends itself to such a policy quite easily with the choppiness of the in-game playing style, but if a manager were to get one challenge per half, would the one-minute stoppage (obviously added on in injury time) really be such a violation of the game?

It would certainly be an interesting new aspect, with managers being forced to make tough decisions quickly.  Just look at the results it might have had on recent matches: Balotelli gets sent off, Tottenham gets the draw it deserved; in the FA Cup, Kompany's red card gets downgraded and we're all treated to the fantastic Manchester derby we were cheated out of.

And with so many complaints every from some fan base or another, and every four years from some wronged nation or another, isn't this what the game really needs?