kayode OGUNDARE
@kaybaba99
Last week, FIFA released the 23-man shortlist for the 2014 Ballon d’Or award and the controversy that the list generated was as a result of the omission of Barcelona and Uruguay forward Luis Suarez.
The reason for his omission is not far-fetched: he’s still being punished for the biting incident at the 2014 World Cup. This was despite the fact that he had just finished serving a lengthy ban as well as a fine.
I have a grouse with his omission. One, it is against natural justice to punish someone TWICE for the same offence. If Suarez was handed a hefty fine along with his four-month ban, it is reasonable that it should be enough recompense for whatever he’s done wrong.
Secondly, the FIFA Ballon d’Or in my opinion, is awarded in recognition of a player’s talents in making, scoring or saving goals. In the process of doing any of these, a player applies whatever measures he deems fit.
Where this runs contrary to laid down rules and regulations, he’s sanctioned according to the dictates of the rulebook. Therefore denying Suarez a mention on that shortlist is tantamount to expecting him to be a role model while we don’t put up other players to that standard.
Recall that ZinedineZidane, after his red card against Saudi Arabia in which he was shown to have brazenly stamped on the opponent at France ’98, sparked a furious argument about whether he ought to be nominated for the team of the tournament or not. Zidane got away with it and was in the FIFA 11.
Eight years later, Zidane also won the Golden Ball despite headbutting Marco Materrazi in the final of the 2006 edition. If Zidane got away with it twice, you want to ask, why not Suarez?
Besides, nominating him does not automatically mean he would be declared winner. If he was nominated and then fails to make the final shortlist of three, nobody would care a hoot and FIFA would be spared this needless controversy.
That, my friends, is my opinion. You have yours and I would like to hear it.
THE SHORTLIST
Gareth Bale (Wales) – Real Madrid
Karim Benzema (France) – Real Madrid
Diego Costa (Spain) – Chelsea
Thibaut Courtois (Belgium) – Chelsea
Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) – Real Madrid
Angel Di Maria (Argentina) – Man United
Mario Gotze (Germany) – Bayern Munich
Eden Hazard (Belgium) – Chelsea
Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden) – PSG
Andres Iniesta (Spain) – Barcelona
Toni Kroos (Germany) – Real Madrid
Philipp Lahm (Germany) – Bayern Munich
Javier Mascherano (Argentina) – Barcelona
Lionel Messi (Argentina) – Barcelona
Thomas Muller (Germany) – Bayern Munich
Manuel Neuer (Germany) – Bayern Munich
Neymar (Brazil) – Barcelona
Paul Pogba (France) – Juventus
Sergio Ramos (Spain) – Real Madrid
Arjen Robben (Holland) – Bayern Munich
James Rodriguez (Colombia) – Real Madrid
Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany) – Bayern Munich
Yaya Toure (Ivory Coast) – Manchester City
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