When the FA decides to fine Luis Díaz following Liverpool’s celebration, common reason wins out.
Liverpool forward Luis Díaz enjoyed a poignant moment as he came on to equalize against Luton. He used the moment to call for the release of his father.
The Football Association (FA) has rendered a decision regarding the shirt message that Luis Díaz of Liverpool wore during a recent game.
Although Díaz technically broke FA regulations, he won’t be prosecuted.
Given the unusual circumstances surrounding Díaz’s personal condition and his partial shirt removal to expose the message, the decision was made.
Recently traumatized by the kidnapping of his parents, Díaz scored a crucial equalizer in his first game back after the event.
Jürgen Klopp started Díaz off the bench in the match against Luton, and the Colombian scored in injury time to help Liverpool level with the struggling Premier League team.
The game marked Díaz’s return to action after a Colombian rebel group kidnapped his parents just over a week prior.
His mother was swiftly released, but his father remains in captivity, with the rebel group known as ELN demanding “security guarantees” for his release.
In an emotional moment after scoring at Kenilworth Road, Díaz lifted his shirt to expose a heartfelt message that read ‘Libertad Para Papa’ (‘Freedom for Papa’).
The FA’s rules stipulate that players should avoid “wearing or revealing any item of clothing displaying any personal message”.
Under normal circumstances, such an action could lead to a potential charge from the governing body.
However, given the exceptional circumstances surrounding Díaz’s case and considering he did not fully remove his shirt, the FA has decided not to press charges against him. That’s per the Daily Mail.
Beyond revealing his shirt message, Díaz also utilized social media platforms to publicly call for his father’s release. He implored the rebel group to keep their promise and release his father promptly.
The heartfelt plea shared by Díaz on social media read: “Here’s not the player speaking. Today’s Lucho Díaz, the son of Luís Manuel Díaz.
Mane, my dad, hard-working man, family pillar… he’s now kidnapped. I ask ELN to release my father as soon as possible.
I also ask the international associations to work on that in order to guarantee his freedom.
Every second, every minute we’re more worried. We’ve no words to describe our family’s terrible feelings, and it will be the same as long as he’s not back at home.
The ELN has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping. In response to Díaz’s goal and public pleas, they have issued a new statement demanding “security guarantees”.
The statement read: “On November 2, we informed the country of the decision to release Mr. Luis Manuel Díaz, father of the player Luis Díaz.
From that date, we began the process to accomplish this as soon as possible. We are making efforts to avoid incidents with government forces.”
The football world continues to rally around Luis Díaz during this challenging time. Fans across the globe join him in hoping for his father’s safe return.
Liverpool.com says: Common sense and the FA don’t always go hand in hand, but the right outcome has clearly been reached here. To have charged Díaz for his celebration would have been beyond farcical.
Credit must go to the on-field referee, too, who elected not to show a yellow card at the time.
In a season where officials have presented themselves as being straitjacketed by protocol, this was a welcome dose of pragmatism and empathy.
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You can read the original piece by clicking here. A Liverpool.com news editor reviewed this content before it was published. You can report any errors to matt.addison@reachplc.com.
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