FIFA World Cup: FIFA dismiss Thiago Silva plea, slam leniency claim

Rio de Janeiro FIFA rejected Brazils request to allow suspended captain Thiago Silva to face Germany in the World Cup semifinals on Monday and hit back at claims referees had been ordered to take a lenient approach to foul playThiago Silva PicAFPA statement from FIFAs Disciplinary Committee dismissed Brazils plea for Silva out of hand stating there was no legal basis for the defenders yellow card against Colombia to be rescindedIn a further snub FIFA disciplinary chiefs also ignored the growing clamour in Brazil for Colombian defender Juan Camilo Zuniga to face retroactive punishment over the aerial challenge that ended Neymars tournamentThe statement said the committee deeply regrets the incident and the serious consequences on Neymars healthBut Zuniga could not be punished because the incident in Fridays stormy quarterfinal had been seen by the match officials at the time a statement saidDisciplinary action could only be applied retroactively in cases of mistaken identity where a referee shows a yellow or red card to the wrong playerThe statement emphasised that even though Neymar had suffered a serious injury in the incident a fractured vertebrae it could not have a bearing on how Zunigas case should be handledWe wish Neymar a prompt and complete recovery as we wish the same for all players who have sadly been ruled out of the World Cup through injury it addedZuniga has apologised for the tackle and insists he had not intended to cause Neymar injuryThe incident late in Fridays clash in Fortaleza has become the focal point of anger directed at match officialsSeveral commentators have criticised the performance of Spanish referee Carlos Velasco Carballo saying he allowed a climate of physicality to escalate culminating in Neymars injury by failing to sanction players on both sides with yellow cards earlier in the gameFury over leniency claimCarballos performance comes after a sharp fall in the number of yellow cards issued during this years World CupThe German newspaper Bild alleged FIFA referees chief Massimo Busacca had told officials to limit cards in order to make the tournament more attractiveBut FIFAs chief spokesman Walter De Gregorio angrily took issue with the report branding it unacceptableThere is a story todaythat there is a secret plan from FIFA telling the referees not to sanction with yellow or red cards in order to have more entertainment or television shares De Gregorio saidIn other words that FIFA is risking and tolerating that players like Neymar and others are injured This is just unacceptableDe Gregorio did not offer any explanation for the slump in cards shown in 2014So far 168 yellow cards have been issued in 60 matches an average of 28 per match That contrasts with an average of 38 per match in 2010 and 48 per game in 2006De Gregorio said he accepted that some World Cup referees may have erredThis is part of the game and we accept that he said But what we cant accept is the question on an ethical level that there is a hidden plan from FIFAThis goes into the core business protecting the main actors the players its the most important thing we have to do at FIFA De Gregorio saidWe have to protect the players If Neymar isnt playing the semifinal or the final its not good for us tooGermany coach Joachim Loew meanwhile used the eveofsemifinal press conference to highlight Brazils physical approach urging match referee Marco Rodriguez of Mexico to punish any illegal tackling by the hosts on TuesdayI hope the referee Rodriguez will clamp down because I have seen in the last few matches that Brazils physical energy is going beyond of what we see in Europe said Loew