Hand of God, again!

France qualified for the 2010 world cup thanks to a controversial William Gallas goal. The goal was perfectly legit as it was scored by a FIFA approved body part. The controversy surrounding the goal stems from the fact the assist by Thierry Henry was assisted by his hands, which falls under the FIFA negative body parts list (unless of course if you are a goalkeeper, which falls under the category of “I can use any body part to stop the ball from hitting the back of the net”).

Everyone living in the lower half of that island on the right of Scotland is furious, even the PM is calling for a replay. Well, almost everyone. One of the most famous Irishmen, a certain Mr Roy Keane is less sympathetic. This is what Keane has to say about the result;

“They can complain all they want but France are going to the World Cup. Get over it. If I'd been there in the dressing room after the game, I wouldn't be talking about the handball. I'd focus on why the defenders didn't clear it. They should've cleared it. I'd be more annoyed with my defenders and my goalkeeper than Thierry Henry. How can you let the ball bounce in your six-yard box? How can you let Thierry Henry get goal-side of you? If the ball goes into the six-yard box, where the hell is my goalkeeper? These are skills and lessons you learn as a schoolboy”.




I am of the opinion that Roy Keane is an arrogant footballer, to put it mildly. He admitted that he deliberately injured Alf-Inge Haaland; intentionally injuring a fellow footballer puts you at the bottom of the scum pile, the worse of the lot. Despite that, I have to agree with him on the handball issue, France won and they are going to South Africa, get over it.

Henry is one talented footballer, probably the best striker of his time. I’m not a footballer so I will never know how ‘a crowded penalty area’ is like but I feel he should be given the benefit of the doubt, I’m sure many have been guilty of a similar offence but it did not result in a decisive goal so nothing was made out of it.

There was no conspiracy; no one was against the Irish, not even God. So they should just get over it and enjoy the world cup.The man at the centre of the controversy has this to say (in case you forgot, he is Thierry Henry);

"I have said at the time and I will say again that yes I handled the ball. I am not a cheat and never have been. It was an instinctive reaction to a ball that was coming extremely fast in a crowded penalty area. As a footballer you do not have the luxury of the television to slow the pace of the ball down 100 times to be able to make a conscious decision. People are viewing a slow motion version of what happened and not what I or any other footballer faces in the game. If people look at it in full speed you will see that it was an instinctive reaction."