Mark Green,

Correspondent (Sport)

 

The debate for goal-line technology has become the number one subject of debate amongst German football fans this weekend. The match between 1899 Hoffenheim and Bayer Leverkusen was overshadowed by a ‘freak’ goal where Bayer striker Stefan Kießling was awarded a goal when the ball didn’t go in. Hoffenheim fans were left stunned when referee Felix Brych awarded the goal after the header had gone wide and yet the ball ended up in the goal after going through a hole in the net.

The ‘phantom goal’, as it has been described, gave Leverkusen a 2-0 lead with a late Hoffenheim goal only providing consolation. The win sent Leverkusen top of the Bundesliga. However Hoffenheim have demanded that the game be replayed arguing that the result is not valid. Alexander Rosen, Hoffenheim managing director stated it as a scandal: “That was no goal, there are no two ways about it. We are definitely going to protest.”

Many commentators during and after the game questioned how the referee did not see that the ball had gone wide and why none of the players informed him of his mistake. After the match Brych gave his version of events.
“There was no indication that it was not a regular goal. I had a bit of doubt, but the reaction of the players was clear. There was nothing to suggest otherwise. I checked with Kießling but no-one, not even him, said that it wasn’t a goal. The ball was in the net and for everyone on the pitch it was a legitimate goal.”

Leverkusen also gave their view of the incident through director of sport Rudi Voller. Voller expressed regret over the issue making it clear that they didn’t want to win in such controversial style but backed Kießling’s actions saying, “Stefan Kießling was not sure about it either, he didn’t have a good feeling either.”

After receiving a huge number of messages on Facebook over his actions, Kießling apologised stating he wasn’t sure what had happened: “I can understand your reaction 100 per cent and I’m angry about it myself. After seeing the replays, I can see clearly that it was not a regular goal. During the game, after heading the ball and turning my head away, I did not see if the ball went in correctly or not. Somehow, the ball finished up in the back of the net. That’s exactly what I told the referee. Fairness is important for sport, for us at the club and for me personally.”

Thankfully there is already a precedent for events like these in Germany. It is likely that the game will be replayed. This was the case in 1994 when a game between Bayern Munich and Nurnberg was decided by a non-goal. The only way for debate to get over is to decide whether the game will be replayed from the point where the phantom goal went in or whether the game will be replayed from the beginning. A decision is likely to be reached when the German Football Association meets at their weekly disciplinary meeting.

With goal-line technology having already been introduced in the English Premier League and with the contract recently awarded to German company GoalControl by FIFA for the 2014 World Cup, it could well be that the technology is introduced into German domestic football in the very near future.

Image Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons