Does the punishment fit the crime?

Chelsea have been banned from signing any new players until January 2011.
The punishment was meted out by world governing body Fifa after the club was found guilty of inducing Gael Kakuta to break his contract with Lens in 2007.
A Fifa statement said the Blues would not be able to register new players in the next two transfer windows.
Chelsea insist they will “mount the strongest appeal possible” and say the sanctions are “totally disproportionate to the alleged offence”.
A statement from the Premier League club, who will make their appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas), added: “We cannot comment further until we receive the full written rationale for this extraordinarily arbitrary decision.”
Fifa’s dispute resolution chamber (DRC) ruled French winger Kakuta, now 18, must also pay compensation of 780,000 euros (£682,000), for which Chelsea are “jointly and severally liable”. (BBC Sport)

Arsenal have confirmed they will appeal against the two-match ban given to striker Eduardo by Uefa for diving to win a penalty against Celtic.
The Croatia forward was found guilty of deceiving the referee as he fell under the challenge of goalkeeper Artur Boruc in the Champions League encounter.
In a statement, Arsenal called the decision by European football’s governing body “deeply flawed”.
Boss Arsene Wenger had already accused Uefa of conducting a “witch-hunt”. (BBC Sport)

It seems that UEFA and FIFA are trying to display some backbone and in doing so are serving severe punishment for two of the games greatest evils, but have they opened a can of worms by doing so and are these two clubs being fairly treated?

I think if we are honest and not holding any axes to grind, we may feel that both clubs have been dealt very harsh penalties and I am fairly confident that after an appeal both will have their sentenced halved and perhaps that way all parties come out with some dignity but that would still leave both London clubs as the recipients of tough sanctions but does the punishment fit the crimes?

Some will say that in Chelsea’s case that it does. They will cite the Mikel and Ashley Cole cases as some kind of evidence of continual disregard to the guidelines set in place to prevent ‘tapping up’ but then what of Real Madrid who have been accused of that very crime three or four times in as many years. If FIFA and UEFA want to get a grip on these offences then they do indeed need to offer tougher penalties but now they have done so they will have to continue in that vain for fear of appearing to impose double standards for such offences.

Eduardo could rightly state that he too has been badly dealt with. The Croatian hasn’t got a track record for diving yet it is he who is used as a precedent for diving when surely others are far more befitting of that auspicious role.

I am a fan of neither club or neither offence but feel that in some ways both governing bodies have got it wrong and the punishments do not fit the crime.


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