42 PARNZL Nishimura
(no full high-definition version of this match)
Paraguay dominated the match (seventeen shots to four) and got the point they needed against New Zealand to progress, as group winners no less. All Whites finished the tournament as the only unbeaten nation, but drawing all three matches was not enough to advance.
Yūichi Nishimura was fulfilling his third match of the tournament, and they weren't getting any easier! Technically much weaker than the simultaneous match in Group F, this was not at all a walk in the park - with a different referee, it is perfectly conceivable that this tie could have gotten rather out of hand.
Yūichi Nishimura was fulfilling his third match of the tournament, and they weren't getting any easier! Technically much weaker than the simultaneous match in Group F, this was not at all a walk in the park - with a different referee, it is perfectly conceivable that this tie could have gotten rather out of hand.
Let's take a closer look at the referee's approach.
Analysis
Elbows?
Such offences were a feature of New Zealand's last game and were prevalent here early on. This time, both Paraguay and the referee were evidently well-prepared for the likelihood that such strikes it would happen again.
With that in mind, it was surprising that Víctor Cáceres wasn't given a soothing word from Nishimura at 9', having been elbowed in the back by Rory Fallon (not a caution or anything though) - a minute later, the Paraguay player exacted powerful revenge by planting his studs down Fallon's calf.
After a small delay (AR Jeong Hae-sang's shout?), Nishimura issued a yellow card; Cácares had actually committed a an act of Serious Foul Play with this offence and should have been sent off (crucial mistake). Surprising that a referee with such excellent game-feeling as he, didn't sense the danger of Fallon's elbow; doing so would have avoided what followed.
(Cácares might have even considered himself a bit fortunate not to have been sent off twice, after this foul at 71')
Nishimura's solution at 17' however was excellently-judged; Fallon's strike was of a careless nature and the Japanese referee managed to avoid (wrongly) booking the New Zealand attacker, as well as calming the Paraguay players down and keeping the game going. 17' was the biggest test of Nishimura's grip on the match, and he passed.
(Cácares might have even considered himself a bit fortunate not to have been sent off twice, after this foul at 71')
Nishimura's solution at 17' however was excellently-judged; Fallon's strike was of a careless nature and the Japanese referee managed to avoid (wrongly) booking the New Zealand attacker, as well as calming the Paraguay players down and keeping the game going. 17' was the biggest test of Nishimura's grip on the match, and he passed.
Gambling?
In the mid-part of the first half, the ref diced with his match control a bit:
- Tony Lochhead should have been cautioned at 21', his foul from behind was reckless
- Tony Lochhead should have been cautioned at 21', his foul from behind was reckless
- No foul at 26', followed by a not given impeding foul at 30' on Roque Santa Cruz
- It would have been wise to book Chris Killen at 32' for his facial strike, given New Zealand's elbow history
Then, Roque Santa Cruz was correctly admonished at 41' for a reckless stamp. Indeed, the two worst offences of the half were the ones which received sanctions, but the caution score (0-2) was perhaps not terribly helpful for Nishimura, given that New Zealand had played a much rougher half than their opponents.
Blocked?
Ryan Nelson was correctly sanctioned for his tactical impeding foul at 56'; it seemed as if it took the referee a short while to reach for the card after the offences was penalised with a freekick.
In order to be consistent, Tony Lochhead (90') and especially Tommy Smith (79') should have also gone in the book for SPA offences, but Nishimura decided it was not tactically valuable to do so. No problem re. 90', but forgiving 79' was probably just a little too much for my taste, especially given the foul's deliberateness.
In order to be consistent, Tony Lochhead (90') and especially Tommy Smith (79') should have also gone in the book for SPA offences, but Nishimura decided it was not tactically valuable to do so. No problem re. 90', but forgiving 79' was probably just a little too much for my taste, especially given the foul's deliberateness.
Managing the Game
Nishimura showed, which might be surprising to some, that he was quite strict in acting against dissent!
He was very firm in censuring, especially Chris Killen (13') and also Winston Reid (84') for talking out of turn to him - one can wonder in the second scene whether it would have been better to turn a blind eye to it, maybe quietly warning Reid at a later moment.
Scene at 85' was slightly anarchic, Japanese ref did very well to separate two confronting players, but at such a late stage it would be better in my view, if it took less than forty seconds to allow New Zealand to take the promising set-piece.
He was very firm in censuring, especially Chris Killen (13') and also Winston Reid (84') for talking out of turn to him - one can wonder in the second scene whether it would have been better to turn a blind eye to it, maybe quietly warning Reid at a later moment.
Scene at 85' was slightly anarchic, Japanese ref did very well to separate two confronting players, but at such a late stage it would be better in my view, if it took less than forty seconds to allow New Zealand to take the promising set-piece.
Personality
Nishimura's presence and manner on the pitch was again simply excellent. The range of tones (13', 84' vs. HT chats) and acceptance he savoured amongst two sets of players who set to challenge his authority in different ways, was really strong. A huge, huge strength of his style!
Assistant Referees
Quiet game for them both on the whole. Jeong Hae-sang's offside given at +93' - you can see Nishimura restarted with an indirect freekick - was not really an important one, but up there with their poorest AR calls of the tournament thus far (- 0,2). Toru Sagara spotted a blatant handling at 1' (in an ideal world Chris Wood shouldn't be able to tell him to "f*ck off", but).
Nishimura's presence and manner on the pitch was again simply excellent. The range of tones (13', 84' vs. HT chats) and acceptance he savoured amongst two sets of players who set to challenge his authority in different ways, was really strong. A huge, huge strength of his style!
Assistant Referees
Quiet game for them both on the whole. Jeong Hae-sang's offside given at +93' - you can see Nishimura restarted with an indirect freekick - was not really an important one, but up there with their poorest AR calls of the tournament thus far (- 0,2). Toru Sagara spotted a blatant handling at 1' (in an ideal world Chris Wood shouldn't be able to tell him to "f*ck off", but).
Balance
Yūichi Nishimura again showed to be the man for tough matches - with his unique game-manager style, he successfully navigated his way through a tricky encounter, even if he wasn't faultless (at any rate, FIFA had no interest in a red at 10', though).
Having convinced in three not-at-all easy group matches, Nishimura would take his place in the knockout stage as option number one for any Europe vs. South America duels. Indeed - he was saved specially for the most sonorous match of the tournament in the quarterfinal stage.
| Yūichi Nishimura - 7,9(3) Tōru Sagara - 8,4 Jeong Hae-sang - 8,2 Koman Coulibaly Inácio Cândido JPN, JPN, KOR – MLI, ANG | Paraguay 0-0 New Zealand Group Stage 24 June |
 Cáceres (10') - Tackle Santa Cruz (41') - Tackle | Nelsen (56') - SPA (Impeding) |
What irked me about this performance was either the lack of action taken by Nishimura (dissent, SFP foul) or the lack of a clear line. It is not enough IMHO to just use cards when "tactically valuable". There needs to be a certain line what constitutes a YC-worthy foul or not, regardless of time or match situation. I found it rather unpredictable here and too random with a focus on avoding whenever possible.
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