Rob Tomek

CTO of Quantitative Insights, Inc.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@davepl1968 @baharkarakrt I assumed this detects bots

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@JustinMacmahan Because cleats to body parts are painful. And metal cleats will fuck up muscles enough to cause career-ending injuries. It’s similar to helmet-to-helmet in the NFL. One infraction might not be bad but when it happens over and over again…

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@EverythingRebs There were a lot of calf muscles ripped to shreds before this became an automatic red card. This is absolutely not a “let them play” moment. This is equivalent to pile driving the QB 5 seconds after the play is over.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@travisakers An evening thunderstorm in Florida? No way. Never heard of that lol

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@Marekwalkuski Relentless bombardment for 40 minutes sounds amazing tbh

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@Fresh_Cure Between medium and medium-well

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@FerretGee I see an assoc. in that acronym. So it’s soccer

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@GACGVEN @andyllc This angle isn’t that great. Both players have a right to be there, and the Belgium player was the one who cut in. This is a typical case of “run into the defender and hope for a penalty in the box” that happens 100x per game.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@Ryley__Delaney IMO the difference is that if you watch the reels, Balogun’s body weight ended up on his opponents ankle, and Messi quickly lifted his foot off, even though the still shots look similar.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@MrBellinghamUS @camolNFT And maybe these people never played defense. The ability of pros to keep their depth synchronized amazes me.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@gwmunson @camolNFT I like both rules. They are clear-cut and leaves nothing to judgement. With modern technology, we have a way to make the precise and correct call every time. The NFL has made considerable changes in the last 20 years to get rid of as many judgement calls as possible.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@sookdejour @ThatCroatianGuy I don’t think he cut in front as much as he got there first and stopped and got crashed into. IMO the red is because Balugan jumped and his full body weight ended up on the ankle, when he was clearly not getting to the ball first. But the slo-mo makes it look way worse.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@derBovo Yes and I think it would give the refs another tool to use in-game. The red becomes something pretty serious and they control the outcome of a future game. And then you can also scale punishments for it occurring mid-season vs in a knock-out tournament.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@derBovo We don’t think it should get an automatic 1-game suspension without a committee review.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@GrantPaulsen This is like a horse-collar tackle in NFL or something. Very dangerous and I’m in agreement with being punished that game. The automatic 1-game suspension is what bugs me.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@SeattleFanGZ @BosniaNTBall Yep. Once VAR was called that told the ref that FIFA thinks it’s red. Not maybe red.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@BosniaNTBall As an American, I don’t mind the call for a dangerous challenge and needing to play down. We should be punished. My issue is with the automatic 1-game suspension. IMO suspensions should be given by a board review and not the single game referee.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@1legflamingo IMO all of this debate really emphasizes the lack of options given to soccer officials. The only options are yellow or red card. And all reds are the same. IMO severity should be determined after the game and 0-3 game suspension determined rather than an automatic 1.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@speerx7 @1legflamingo Soccer cards aren’t necessarily about intent, it’s about how potentially dangerous something is. Think of it as a horse-collar tackle or helmet-to-helmet in the NFL. The real issue is the only choices available are a yellow or red card.

[Rob Tomek @robtomek]

@1legflamingo I still think it could be called yellow or red and lean toward yellow. That slo-mo shot of the ankle buckling was his downfall. Slo-mo is supposed to be for point of contact and not intensity. Things always look worse in a still shot or slo mo.