Lautaro Martínez Avoids Second Yellow Card for Crowd Leap, Stays Eligible for England Semi-Final
Lautaro Martínez, the Inter Milan captain, escaped a second yellow card for leaping into the crowd to celebrate Argentina's World Cup goal, keeping him available for the semi-final against England.
On Saturday, Martínez vaulted the advertising hoardings to celebrate Argentina's third goal against Switzerland in the World Cup. The goal ensured that the reigning champions would progress to the semi-finals, where they will face Thomas Tuchel's England in Atlanta on Wednesday. Martínez scored a third in stoppage time to put the result in Kansas City beyond any doubt.
Typically, jumping into the crowd would result in a yellow card. It would have been Martínez's second, resulting in his dismissal and an automatic one-match suspension that would have ruled him out against England. However, the 28-year-old avoided sanctions from match referee Joao Pinheiro, sparking questions about Martínez's lack of punishment.
Unlike the ban he would have faced had he been issued with a second yellow card, Martínez's offence does not in fact carry an automatic yellow card. Pinheiro had the right to exercise his discretion according to the Laws of the Game, football's rule book. Celebration of goals is covered by Law 12, which governs fouls and misconduct and provides the framework by which referees decide whether or not to caution celebrating players.
Law 12 states that "players can celebrate when a goal is scored, but the celebration must not be excessive; choreographed celebrations are not encouraged and must not cause excessive time-wasting." Martínez didn't fulfil any of those criteria, the crucial factor being the 'manner' in which he approached the fans behind the Switzerland goal.
As a result of the extra round necessitated by the expansion of the World Cup to 48 teams, FIFA have implemented a second amnesty of yellow cards during the tournament. Yellow cards were wiped at the end of the group stage and against after the quarter-finals, specifically to avoid a yellow card in the semi-final from leading to a suspension at the end of a mammoth knock-out phase.
Like Martínez, other players who received yellow cards in the quarter-finals will be available for the semi-final. Jude Bellingham, Nico O'Reilly, Declan Rice, and Marc Guehi all avoided yellow cards in England's quarter-final win against Norway on Saturday. They will be available for the semi-final, unlike Jarell Quansah, who will serve the second match of his two-game ban.
The semi-final between Argentina and England will take place in Atlanta on Wednesday, with the reigning champions looking to progress to the final.