\n<\/p>\n
Throughout almost every game at this World Cup you will find examples of players talking to each other while covering their mouth. Even referees have been doing it. <\/p>\n
Importantly, there was no animosity between Bellingham and Ayew – it was merely two players chatting.<\/p>\n
How did the Almiron red card differ?<\/p>\n
What was happening in the match was important.<\/p>\n
Paraguay’s Isidro Pitta had gone to ground claiming a bad challenge by Turkey’s Ismail Yuksek.<\/p>\n
This led to a melee between the two sets of players. Close by, Almiron covered his mouth when talking to Turkey’s Mert Muldur.<\/p>\n
Almiron and Muldur were not directly involved in the pushing and shoving, but the game was in a heated situation.<\/p>\n
“This thing about covering the mouth is for us a very, very important rule,” Infantino told SNTV on Tuesday following Almiron’s dismissal. <\/p>\n
“It’s about respect. It’s about the example that we should give.<\/p>\n
“If you have nothing to hide, you don’t cover your mouth when you speak to somebody.<\/p>\n
“The rules have been made very clear to everyone.”<\/p>\n
There are questions about how reliable this law change is, however. There is the possibility that a player could use it to get an opponent sent off in a situation like this.<\/p>\n
Almiron, for instance, did not appear to be acting aggressively, while Muldur immediately turned around to highlight it to an assistant referee.<\/p>\n
Almiron has received a one-game ban and will miss Paraguay’s final group game against Australia, with both teams likely requiring a point to reach the last 32.<\/p>\n
The ban could have been longer if there was evidence of abusive language.<\/p>\n
The new law is an opt-in, whereby a competition can choose whether to implement it. So far, it is only being used at the World Cup.<\/p>\n
The difficulty in being consistent with the law, and the potential for it to be abused, means it might not be adopted by the domestic leagues. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n