In what’s been the most talked about incident of the 2009 / 10 Champions League tournament so far, Croatian International and Arsenal striker Eduardo has been found guilty of “Deceiving a Referee”by an independent disciplinary panel and handed a two game Champions League ban.
Via Guardian
The London club are considering an appeal against the ban, which stands to rule out Eduardo from the Champions League group ties against Standard Liege and Olympiakos, amid feelings of injustice and persecution. Arsenal strongly believe that the governing body’s processes have been inconsistent and flawed.
Eduardo was found guilty by an independent disciplinary panel, convened under the auspices of Uefa, of “deceiving the referee” with his tumble in last Wednesday’s Champions League play-off against Celtic. It yielded a penalty, from which he scored.
The referee, Manuel Mejuto González, has stood by his decision to award the penalty but Uefa nonetheless decided to refer the case to its disciplinary unit. It can do so under the little-used law 10(1)(c), which permits it to revisit incidents containing alleged deceptions or simulations, even if the official feels that he has got the decision right at the time, or even upon reflection.
Eduardo’s case was heard at Uefa’s headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, and was judged on the evidence of written submissions from both sides. Arsenal had sent a detailed 19-page dossier in which they outlined a tough defence but the writing had appeared on the wall for their striker when Uefa’s general inspector, Gerhard Kapl, wrote, for the prosecution, that “in this case, there are no exceptional circumstances that would justify a plea for mercy”.
Kapl also referred to Eduardo’s “gross unsporting behaviour” and him having won the penalty with an “obvious dive” and “through the act of cheating”. Arsenal’s feeling that the case might have been prejudged has contributed to their angst. They were led to believe that the hearing started at 4.30pm BST and they received a fax containing the judgment at 5.23pm. They feel that 53min was insufficient time for the panel to give proper consideration to their 19-page submission.
It appeared Uefa would only have decided to over-rule González and bring a charge of cheating against Eduardo if it felt that there was the strong possibility of getting a guilty verdict, and that was how events played out in Switzerland. Arsenal’s fury, reflected most vividly in the manager, Arsène Wenger, means that their appeal will be the least of the protest.
“The club is disappointed with Uefa’s decision,” read a statement. “We have been informed that we will receive a ‘reasoned decision’ from Uefa by Thursday of this week. Once we receive Uefa’s rationale, we will make a decision on the next steps.
“We have been deeply frustrated by the perfunctory and apparently arbitrary process that Uefa has followed in this instance. We believe it is imperative that Uefa’s explanation for its decision provides clear and comprehensive standards that will be consistently enforced. It is also critical that Uefa provides specific details of the processes it plans to adopt in reviewing all games under its jurisdiction.”
Image via Independent
