BILBAO, Spain – European football's governing body Uefa on Thursday reiterated its wish that the so-called 'triple punishment' be reconsidered by the panel that governs the laws of the game.
Under the current laws, a player who denies an opponent a clear goalscoring opportunity in the box and concedes a penalty should also receive a red card and is therefore automatically suspended for a subsequent fixture.
However, at a meeting in Bilbao in the Spanish Basque Country on Thursday, Uefa's Executive Committee asked for the International Football Association Board (IFAB) to recommend awarding only a yellow card rather than a red in such circumstances.
Uefa general secretary Gianni Infantino said: “The Executive Committee has asked IFAB to address the issue and clarify the situation at their next meeting so that there are no more red cards for fouls committed inside the box.
“We need to resolve the issue of the 'triple punishment' once and for all. Everyone is talking about it and feels it is an injustice.”
Meanwhile, Infantino confirmed that Spain and new Uefa member Gibraltar would be kept apart when the draw for the Euro 2016
qualifiers is made in Nice, France next February.
The sovereignty of the British Overseas Territory on the southern tip of the Iberian peninsula has long been disputed by the Spanish. – Sapa-AFP