Post-game silliness in Chicago-Seattle could have been avoided

Hang in there on the highlights (below, at bottom of the post) if you’d like to see why Chicago Fire manager Frank Klopas and defender Jalil Anibaba will be watching their team’s match this week from stadium club level, or perhaps with fans at a nearby pub.

Both were shown red cards after the fact on Saturday, Klopas apparently for “language” and Anibaba either for fighting or for a terrible tackle that nearly incited a brawl – and that may well earn him an extra match on the sidelines. Yes, the Disciplinary Committee phone is ringing.

The highlight package from MLSSoccer.com runs about 7 minutes, 40 seconds. The silliness in question occurs at the 7:20 mark. (There is no independent highlight available of the furious few final seconds.)

If you want to know why it all happened …

Dagnabbit, I hate to take out my word belt and go to lashing MLS referees again. But if we must, we must …

There are four minutes of stoppage time given. Got it?

Maybe, just maybe, an extra 30 seconds or so of stoppage time could have been added on top for time wasting. If you’re stretching things, maybe another minute.

But taking things an extra two minutes, as referee Michael Kennedy did? And then going past that? It’s just asking for it.

Kennedy got this one wrong. Respected colleague Kyle McCarthy agrees (in his third item) here.

Blow the whistle, man! Point the center circle. Shake some hands and let everyone go pour cold water over their steamy noggins! Tensions are high in these frantic, final minutes, and the man in the middle should know it better than anyone.

Klopas and Anibaba certainly are accountable, but this thing never needed to happen.

Here are the highlights.

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