Keep Celebrations in the Game

I was curious to read this past week that Manchester United defender Gary Neville had been charged with improper conduct by the English Football Association for his overexuberant celebrations following a late goal by teammate Rio Ferdinand in the Red Devils’ 1 – nil victory over perennial rivals Liverpool. What did Neville do to warrant this action you wonder?

Did he jump in the stands to join the United faithful?
No.

Did he make a fascist salute as Lazio’s Paolo DiCanio had done in a match in Rome last year?
No.

Did he taunt his opponents in the wake of what appeared to be certain victory with only stoppage time remaining to be played?
NO!

In fact, all that Neville did was to show his ecstasy and pride by pointing enthusiastically to his jersey in front of the Liverpool faithful who’d made the trip to Old Trafford.

In my opinion, the English FA and FIFA have gone too far in limiting celebrations after a goal. Is it not enough that referees are now required to caution (i.e. show a yellow card) players for excessive celebration? I agree that players like DiCanio who make inflammatory gestures should face sanctions, but Neville’s exuberance was quite benign by comparison.

In the game of football, nothing compares with the emotion of scoring a goal and I believe that allowing players to demonstrate that emotion is an important part of the game. Conversely, I also understand the need to promote sportsmanship and a sense of decorum that doesn’t devolve into a riotous frenzy in the stands. The question remains (to me at least), did Neville cross that line? I argue that he did not.

But common sense needs be employed, both by governing bodies of football as well as those who attend live matches. Without question, the rules regarding celebrations have been established to mitigate the potential for violence, both on the field as well as off. The referees can only control the twenty-two people on the pitch, but the stadium security is responsible for the tens of thousands of supporters in the stands.

Therefore, a great deal of responsibility falls upon each individual who attends a match. How will each of us react to a win or a loss and can crowd violence be effectively eliminated from the game? I believe it can.

Allow players like Neville to properly express themselves on the pitch (which I believe he did) and severely punish those who commit violent acts both inside stadia and beyond. Treat football-related crimes like we do ‘hate crimes’ here in the States and you’ll see much less thuggery in the future. Passion, after all, is to be expected from both players and fans alike, but cracking down on the actions that are truly offensive and dangerous to others is far more important than virtually eliminating post-goal exuberance.

Am I being naive or do you think what I’m saying makes sense?

Until next week’s view from the middle…

Peace,
ac