Last week, in the Europa League tournament in St. Petersburg, Zenit achieved an incredible victory in the most unexpected way. In the 70th minute of the match, the Russians were trailing 0:3 against Maccabi Tel Aviv, but managed to score 4 goals and triumph 4:3. This victory is memorable not only because of the unexpectedly collapsed defense of the Israeli team, but also because of the new FIFA rules utilized by referee Ivan Kružliak. Previously, if there was a serious foul during a rapid opponent attack, the referee had to stop the game and show a card. Now, the dangerous attack is allowed to continue, but the offending player cannot rejoin the defense or touch the ball again, as it leads to a penalty kick. This is exactly what happened to Maccabi player Eli Dasa, who, while trying to help his defense after receiving a second yellow card, was sent off the field. Zenit, who successfully scored a penalty kick just outside the goal, narrowed the gap to 2:3, and later extended their victory.
Slovakian referee Ivan Kružliak enforced a new rule change during the Maccabi Tel Aviv-Zenit game, an explanation pic.twitter.com/ivKzrZiwt8 — Mohamed Moallim (@iammoallim) September 18, 2016
