TMO for soccer?
Sports journalist Sabelo Mashego ponders if the TMO system should be introduced to football.
![](https://images.caxton.co.za/wp-content/uploads/sites/36/2014/06/mexico-ww_533094509.jpg)
Kudos to FIFA for introducing Goal Line Technology (GLT) following years of resistance to do so.
With the technology being used for the first time at the 2014 World Cup following a U-turn by FIFA president Sepp Blatter, it awarded its first goal, albeit controversially, when France striker Karim Benzema struck a volley against the upright, with the ball flying back across the face of goal before hitting Honduras goalkeeper Noel Valladares on its way in.
Of course, GLT’s introduction followed the infamous incident at the 2010 tournament when England midfielder Frank Lampard had a legitimate goal disallowed against Germany, with football’s governing body left with little choice but to introduce GLT.
With the issue surrounding whether the ball has crossed the line or not seemingly resolved, perhaps FIFA should look into another aspect in the game, which has already denied at least one team of goals in this World Cup: the offside.
Mexico forward, Giovani dos Santos saw two valid goals disallowed against Cameroon in their Group A clash despite replays showing that both goals were incorrectly adjudged.
Firstly, the striker thumped a deft volley from a perfectly-weighted cross past the Indomitable Lions goalkeeper Charles Itanje, only to see the flag up by the assistant for offside, much to his disbelief.
The Villarreal man was in the mix of things again and netted 20 minutes later, this time from a Miguel Layun corner-kick, but the assistant again waved his flag for offside, much to the striker’s frustration.
Fortunately for FIFA perhaps, the erroneous decisions did not influence the final outcome of the match as Mexico emerged as 1-0 victors through an Oribe Peralta strike.
But with human error, a thing of absolution, such incidents are always like a bomb waiting to go off.
And should they transpire during the latter and more vital stages of the tournament, and deny a nation of possible World Cup glory, then these finals would not have only taught us who the best team in the world is but a possible increasing need of rugby’s television match official (TMO) system. – @SabeloBoksburg