|
'Football at crossroads'
23/03/2007 17:10 - (SA)
Zurich - Fifa president Sepp Blatter has warned that violence on and off the field has driven football to a crossroads and he raised the possibility of punishing coaches for the actions of their players.
Blatter said after a Fifa executive committee meeting: "We have now come to a crossroads of football. Our football is ill and we must find medicine."
He said successive Fifa congresses in recent years, which assemble football chiefs from around the world, had examined the problem and sought to raise awareness.
"We have discussed it and now we need to act," said Blatter.
Asked about the possibility of making coaches accountable for misbehaviour by players, Blatter said it was a sensitive issue and ruled it out for sporting conduct like fouls or cheating.
However, he said he personally favoured the idea for disciplinary conduct like players who fight.
"Coaches could also be punished," Blatter said.
"Coaches are also responsible for the behaviour of their team," he underlined.
Blatter slammed clashes between Arsenal and Chelsea players during the League Cup final in Cardiff last month,and the mass brawl between Valencia and Inter Milan players in their Champions League tie on March 6.
"If players are not educated and coaches don't impose a minimum of discipline on them, where are we heading?" he wanted to know.
Blatter noted that even rich countries were unable to provide a safe environment for fans in their stadiums.
- AFP
|
