Another iffy goal helps replay's cause

The most controversial goal of the English Premier League season will be used as part of the case in support of implementing video replay into top-level soccer.

Manchester United forward Nani sparked a wild wave of conjecture Saturday with a bizarre goal that sealed his team's 2-0 victory over Tottenham.

With six minutes left in the game and United leading by a goal, Nani tumbled to the ground while being challenged by Tottenham defender Younes Kaboul. As he did, Nani appeared to intentionally handle the ball, which prompted Tottenham goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes to pick it up and place it on the ground in front of him in anticipation of a free-kick.

But referee Mark Clattenburg did not acknowledge the infringement. He ruled that the ball was still in play when Gomes put in on the turf, despite his assistant waving his flag to signal an infraction. Amid the confusion, Nani knocked the ball past a livid Gomes and into the net before embarking upon a joyous celebration.

Now the goal and the surrounding furor will be used to help usher in video technology ahead of the 2014 World Cup. FIFA president Sepp Blatter has ordered an inquest into whether replays should be used to determine if a ball has crossed the goal line, but members of the FIFA technical committee are anxious to explore the possibility of more widespread video use.

Blatter's task force will collect footage of significant incidents where the use of replay could have led to a more accurate decision. The Nani goal certainty fits into that category and adds more weight to the argument in favor of using video.

The World Cup was marred by some highly contentious decisions, which included England having a goal disallowed against Germany even though the ball had crossed the line by two feet, and Argentina being awarded a goal against Mexico when Carlos Tevez clearly was offside.

FIFA slowly is accepting that it must use some kind of replay to appease frustrated fans and players, but it may be a slow process. Even that will be of little solace to Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp, who believed his team was still in contention to salvage a point before Nani's goal.

"What a farcical way to finish a game," Redknapp said after the match. "It was [a] deliberate handball. The referee obviously didn't see Nani handball it, so that's why he let play go on. The assistant has seen it; that's why he flagged. So the referee should disallow the goal.

"I thought it was a scandalous decision. [Clattenburg] will come up with some excuse for why he didn't see it. He made a real mess of the situation."

United boss Sir Alex Ferguson, however, insisted Gomes was the player at fault for losing his concentration.

"He made a mess of it," Ferguson said. "The referee played on because the goalkeeper had possession of the ball. So the goalkeeper has made an error. It was bizarre. No one knew at the time what was wrong. One minute the goalkeeper had the ball in his hands and next it's in his net. Nani looked back and looked at the referee and the referee said play on, so what can he do but put the ball in the net?

"You can look at the referee and look at the linesmen and blame them, but the goalkeeper should know better. He's an experienced goalkeeper."

This was not the first time Tottenham has been on the receiving end of a poor decision by Clattenburg. In an EPL game against United in 2005, Pedro Mendes' long-range shot crossed the line before being scooped away by goalkeeper Roy Carroll, but Clattenburg ruled the goal should not stand.