Another Nigerian-born player is in the news regarding copntroversial cards issued by referees at the ongoing FIFA World Cup, as Michael Olise stands to miss the semi-finals with France – if his country scales the hurdle against Morocco on Thursday, Sports247 reports.
In contrast with the saving grace that saw Folarin Balogun cleared to play for USA against Belgium in the round of 16, despite having received a red card after scoring in the USMNT’s 2-0 victory over Bosnia-Herzegovina, Olise has been denied a reprieve for the booking he got versus Paraguay.
The yellow card that was brandished in Olise’s face during that round of 16 tie came under fishy circumstances, but FIFA rejected an appeal by France on behalf of the Bayern Munich of Germany dazzler, which means he must not get another booking in Thursday’s quarter-finals fixture versus Morocco.
Should Olise go into the ref’s bad book during Thursday’s game, he will automatically miss out of the semi-finals if his team gets that far, as FIFA’s decision to stick with the original decision leaves him hanging on a thin string of accumulated cards that could automatically rule him out of the next game.
“FIFA has officially denied France’s appeal to overturn the controversial yellow card issued to Michael Olise. Head coach Didier Deschamps confirmed the governing body chose to maintain the original decision despite the French federation’s formal protest.
“This disciplinary decision means that, if Olise receives another yellow card, he will face an automatic suspension from a potential semi-final. It follows an on-field altercation with a Paraguayan player that saw the Bayern Munich star booked and now treading a disciplinary tight-rope.
“The disputed yellow card was handed to the winger deep into stoppage time in the 97th minute of play. The caution was triggered by an aggressive on-field altercation with Paraguayan player, Matías Galarza,” a report by UK’s Mirror revealed.