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Message: [QUOTE="gtcam, post: 4437725, member: 2844"] Boy if the game was as simple as you make it sound............................... He didn't get caught out, he was trying to stop Bale from collecting and squaring to goal with the ball in a shooting position which Bale can do as fast as any player in the world. Unfortunately for Zim, Bale made a reactionary movement that caused legs to meet and once he felt that Bale exaggerated the contact (as he should) to create an impression of a callable infraction. Being in the box just magnified the situation. Had it been in the midfield it would have been play on 90% of the time because Zim did contact ball first and I didn't see cleats up. I don't have a huge problem with the call but I certainly don't fault Zim based on the fact he is a MLS player. He is a proven skilled defender. I wouldn't be upset with any of my players had they done the same thing as Zim and would have loved to see any offensive player have the attention to detail as Bale. It was a bang/bang play in a crucial area of the field involving one of the best creators/opportunists in the world - bad luck for the U.S. but the way the ref was calling the game it wasn't going to be anything but a penalty even if there was a question in his mind. It was a bang/bang reactionary play and d't [/QUOTE]