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PHOTO: Panama players pose with banner calling CONCACAF 'thieves'
Panama's soccer community was left fuming after Wednesday night's CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal loss to Mexico for injustices suffered by the referee. Panama's players took matters into their own hands after the match with a homemade banner airing their frustrations with the governing body.
Panama's players were visibly furious with the calls against them in their CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal, when referee Mark Geiger pointed to the spot twice and also showed Panama forward Luis Tejada a straight red card in the 25th minute.
Those decisions, as well as multiple clashes between the two teams on the field and instances in which fans threw beer and trash at Panama's players prompted a very public protest after the match.
All 23 players for Panama were photographed in the locker room with their thumbs down, holding a makeshift banner that was whipped up quickly after the match. The words "CONCACAF LADRONES" were written in Spanish, which, translated, means "CONCACAF thieves" or "crooks." The word "corrupt" was written three times along the bottom.
Such was the controversy that newspaper headlines in Mexico featured apologies to Panama. Mexico's goal scorer on the day, Andres Guardado, also said he considered missing the penalty on purpose.
One of the biggest newspapers in Mexico asks Panama for forgiveness:
"It was painful," Guardado told TV Azteca in Spanish, translated by ESPN. "Yes, for a minute, yes (I considered missing) but in the end, we are professionals and you think about the times you have been on the other side and the hearts of the other team's players aren't moved. I repeat, this is football, sometimes you are given and sometimes it is taken away. Whether it should have been a penalty or not, that is not our fault."
Copyright © 2015 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.
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Panama's soccer community was left fuming after Wednesday night's CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal loss to Mexico for injustices suffered by the referee. Panama's players took matters into their own hands after the match with a homemade banner airing their frustrations with the governing body.
Panama's players were visibly furious with the calls against them in their CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal, when referee Mark Geiger pointed to the spot twice and also showed Panama forward Luis Tejada a straight red card in the 25th minute.
Those decisions, as well as multiple clashes between the two teams on the field and instances in which fans threw beer and trash at Panama's players prompted a very public protest after the match.
All 23 players for Panama were photographed in the locker room with their thumbs down, holding a makeshift banner that was whipped up quickly after the match. The words "CONCACAF LADRONES" were written in Spanish, which, translated, means "CONCACAF thieves" or "crooks." The word "corrupt" was written three times along the bottom.
Such was the controversy that newspaper headlines in Mexico featured apologies to Panama. Mexico's goal scorer on the day, Andres Guardado, also said he considered missing the penalty on purpose.
One of the biggest newspapers in Mexico asks Panama for forgiveness:
"It was painful," Guardado told TV Azteca in Spanish, translated by ESPN. "Yes, for a minute, yes (I considered missing) but in the end, we are professionals and you think about the times you have been on the other side and the hearts of the other team's players aren't moved. I repeat, this is football, sometimes you are given and sometimes it is taken away. Whether it should have been a penalty or not, that is not our fault."
Copyright © 2015 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.
Continue reading...
