Similar Similar Means Different Part 3

Manchester City's Vincent Kompany was sent off by Referee Chris Foy for lunging at an opponent with both legs in a scissors formation (please see Part 1 and Part 2).

Serbia forward Mateja Kezman will be ending his football career (i.e. hanging up his boots) in Hong Kong after he plays his two final matches in the city on 23 and 26 January 2012. See excerpts of news story below.

Question: What do the above two statements have in common?
Answer: Mateja Kezman was sent off at the 2006 World Cup in Germany for doing exactly what Vincent Kompany did in Manchester in 2012. Furthermore, Kezman has chosen to end his football career in Hong Kong which coincidentally brings in the 'Hong Kong connection'.


The following incident occurred during the 2006 World Cup group match between Argentina and Serbia on 16 June 2006. The match finished 6—0, and the goal of the tournament also came from this match (i.e. Argentina's 24 or 25 pass move that came several years before the appearance of the current Messi-Xavi-Iniesta-inspired Barcelona side who now 'routinely' produce such wonderful goals every time they play! Messi was a 74' substitute in that 2006 Word Cup match).

Round 2. Argentina vs Serbia 2006 World Cup (FIFA Highlights)



At 1:20 of the highlights videoclip which corresponds to the 65' of the match, Mateja Kezman (white 8) lunges at Javier Mascherano (blue 8). Here are the freeze frames:

Camera view 1

Camera view 2

Referee Roberto Rosetti sends off Kezman for SFP

There was nothing wrong with Italian Referee Roberto Rosetti's performance; he ended up refereeing a total of 4 matches at the WC in Germany.

Kezman sarcastically claps the Referee's decision while also trying to appear to clap for the fans

CONCLUSION
Kezman's two-footed lunge at his opponent is the same as Vincent Kompany's two-footed lunge at his opponent. Both were correctly sanctioned with a DFK to the other team and a red card to the offending player.

Follow Up:
FIFA's Disciplinary Committee gave Kezman a two-match ban for SFP (note: since then Serbia has never called up Kezman to play for his country again).
The FA's Disciplinary Commission upheld Kompany's three-match ban for SFP (note: as a result of a previous red card earlier in the season, Kompany received an extra one-match ban).

I hope this post, along with Part 1 and Part 2 completes this analysis of Chris Foy The Courageous.


I repeat. Chris Foy should be applauded for taking a firm stand against the expectation of leniency in the Premiership. Given the EPL's reputation, popularity and global following where entertainment is apparently prioritized over player safety, Chris Foy has clearly demonstrated Pierluigi Collina's Principle: “The best referee is one who has the courage to make decisions even when it would be easier not to.”


Aside: The interesting thing is that Mateja Kezman spent four months in Hong Kong in early 2011 and really got to like the place and its people. Toward the end of 2011, Kezman didn't appear to be having the best of times in terms of football (i.e. he played 11 games for Belarusian side BATE Borisov; 6 in the league and 5 in the Champions League, without scoring). Therefore, he announced he will end his career in Hong Kong this month, playing in an exhibition international four-team tournament called the Lunar New Year Cup.

It is nice to hear that Kezman has a fondness for Hong Kong and he is probably a nice guy. However from a Referee's perspective, on the pitch Kezman generally does not respect match officials and has a tendency to get himself in trouble during matches (e.g. Nicky Butt Sees Red in Hong Kong).

HKRef wishes everyone a prosperous Chinese New Year of the Dragon!
Thank you for visiting this site.


Excerpts from the South China Morning Post (SCMP)

HK matches will be Kezman's last

Serbian striker to appear for South China in Asian Challenge Cup before hanging up his boots for good
SOCCER
Chan Kin-wa
Jan 19, 2012

Former Serbia international Mateja Kezman will finish his glittering career in Hong Kong after playing for South China in the Asian Challenge Cup next week.

The 32-year-old striker, whose former clubs include PSV Eindhoven, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain, will return to Hong Kong tomorrow after agreeing to play for the Caroliners in the four-team tournament to celebrate Lunar New Year.

"Kezman likes Hong Kong very much and has had a lot support from fans during his time here," South China convenor Steven Lo Kit-sing said.

"If he wants a place to call it a day in his soccer career, there is no better place than Hong Kong. This is an honour for Hong Kong soccer. We will arrange some activities for him on the second day of the tournament, which will be Mateja's last match as he bids farewell to a career of almost two decades. We will reserve the number 38 jersey he used in Hong Kong."

Kezman joined Zemun in Belgrade as a 15-year-old before moving to Partizan, the country's leading club, four years later. He then joined Dutch side PSV Eindhoven from 2000 to 2003, scoring 35 goals in 2003 to help them win the league title. After playing for a long list of European clubs, he moved to South China in December 2010, along with former Manchester United star Nicky Butt.

The Serbian scored seven goals during his four-month stint with the Caroliners.

The influence of [Kezman and Butt], however, was not enough to help South China progress beyond the group stage of the AFC Cup. The Caroliners also lost the all-important local league title to Kitchee, a result which kept them out of this season's AFC Cup.