BERLIN (AP) -- Senior English and Russian referees were cut from
the World Cup roster Wednesday after their controversial handling
of previous matches.
Premier League referee Graham Poll, who issued three yellow
cards to one player in a match, and Valentin Ivanov, who handed out
a record number of cautions and ejections in the
Portugal-Netherlands second-round match, were omitted from
officials selected for the quarterfinals, semifinals and final.
FIFA's referees commission released a list of 12 teams of
officials Wednesday shortly after FIFA president Sepp Blatter made
more critical comments about the standard of officiating at the
tournament.
"In the same way that our members send their best teams, FIFA
owes it to itself, in its own flagship competition, to send out the
best referees," Blatter said on FIFA's Web site www.fifa.com.
"Hundreds of millions of players and referees around the world are
watching what happens in Germany, with the desire to improve
themselves and understand how the game is changing.
"Instead, I've noted that instructions aren't being followed
consistently from one match to another. There are the tackles from
behind I've seen go unpunished and the violent conduct that has
escaped sanction, not to mention the serious errors made in
applying the rules."
German referee Markus Merk, criticized for being too whistle
happy in a first-round match between defending champion Brazil and
Australia, was one of six European referees retained.
Luis Medina, who awarded a debatable penalty kick to Italy in
the last seconds of its 1-0 second-round match against Australia,
also made the list and will officiate Brazil's quarterfinal against
France.
Other Europeans selected included Michel Lubos of Slovakia,
Roberto Rosetti of Italy, Frank de Bleeckere of Belgium, and
Massimo Busacca of Switzerland.
Horacio Elizondo, the Argentine referee who handled the
tournament's opening match between Germany and Costa Rica, was
among six non-Europeans selected and will continue his tournament
with England's quarterfinal against Portugal in Gelsenkirchen.
The others were Toru Kamikawa of Japan, Benito Archundia of
Mexico, Jorge Larrionda of Uruguay, Mark Shield of Australia and
Coffi Codjia, a tax inspector from Benin in Africa.
Despite his experience, Poll was considered likely to go after
his blunder that could have forced a replay of the first-round
match between Croatia and Australia. He gave three yellow cards to
a Croatia defender; a second caution should immediately be followed
by a red card.
The game ended 2-2, enough for Australia to make the second
round. If Australia had lost, it could have protested the result
based on Poll's error.
Ivanov set World Cup records when he issued 16 cautions and four
red cards in Portugal's 1-0 win over the Nettherlands. That
promoted a stinging rebuke from Blatter, who told a television
interview that Ivanov should have given himself a yellow card.
