Town boss Paul Jewell says that if goal-line technology is brought in he’d like to see other types of decision looked at in a similar manner. Yesterday’s goal that never was in the FA Cup semi-final between Chelsea and Spurs has led to renewed calls for technology to be used to indicate whether the ball has crossed the line with FIFA set to test two such systems later this month.
The International Football Association Board (IFAB), the body which approves changes to the game's laws, meets on July 2nd to decide whether either or both will be implemented. The FA, who are represented on the IFAB, backs its introduction, while UEFA is opposed.
Jewell, however, feels this doesn't go far enough : "What’s the difference between goal-line technology and an offside goal? You’ve got to get the right decision. That goal that Wigan conceded against Chelsea was what, two yards offside?
"The penalty that Ashley Young got against QPR, he was a yard offside. I don’t see the difference between those decisions and goal-line technology.”
The Blues manager points out that only introducing technology for goal-line decisions could lead to anomalies: "I go back to the Maradona situation in 1986. If we’d had goal-line technology then and it had hit the bar and gone over the line, the goal-line technology would have had to have given the goal, even though he handled it.
"I think they should give each side two calls a half, like they do in cricket and tennis. People say it’ll take too long but by the time the referee’s booked whoever he’s booking because they’re arguing because it’s not a penalty and cleared the 18-yard box, we could have made the decision.
"It’s a minute or longer before a penalty’s taken sometimes. It would stop us moaning if we could challenge referees in the right way, when we think that’s offside, for example.
"You can’t go back and watch a video and then challenge it. But Roberto Martinez could have said last week ‘I think that goal’s offside’. It wouldn’t have stopped any play. They’d look at the video, make the right decision and the players are happy because they know they got the right decision and the crowd aren’t unhappy because they know the right decision’s been made.
"I think the referees would be happy with that because that takes the pressure off them. If you can’t decide by looking at the video, then go with the referee’s decision.”
He says the top flight could certainly afford to introduce his idea: "I don’t understand why we can’t give four queries a game for each team. Maybe it’s down to cost but the Premier League could do it because they’ve got as much money as anyone.”