It was a magnificent direct free kick by Red Bull #10 (Djorkaeff). The shot from 30 yards out sailed untouched into the upper left corner of the DC United goal and represented the kind of exciting play that makes soccer “the beautiful game.” Unfortunately, the goal should not have been counted due to a violation of Law 11 (Offside) by two Red Bull attackers who were in an offside position at the time of the restart and who interfered with the United goalkeeper (#1, Perkins). A clip of this incident is attached. There is no dispute that Red Bull #19 (Henderson) and #6 (Stammler) were in an offside position at the time of the free kick. Both attackers were just inside the goal area with Henderson virtually in line between the United goalkeeper and the location of the free kick while Stammler was farther to the right. This put Henderson less than six yards in front of the goalkeeper. There was no strategic or tactical reason for these positions, nor had the players in question placed themselves in these positions as a result of dynamic play. It was a ceremonial restart and the positions of these players were deliberately chosen. According to Law 11, a player in an offside position is not permitted to engage in any of the following activities:
For these reasons, the goal by Djorkaeff should have been disallowed. The foundation for correctly deciding whether an offside offense has occurred is the opinion of the referee, but that opinion must be formed by the guidelines as stated above. To download and/or view the film clip (wmv) click here |