🎥 Hand over mouth and Almirón sent off: the 🆕 rule after the Vini case | OneFootball

One of the most talked-about images from Turkey-Paraguay was that of Miguel Almirón, captured with a look of total disbelief after a refereeing decision that many struggled to understand at the time.

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Almirón, in fact, became the first player ever sent off for covering his mouth while speaking to an opponent. The incident is tied to one of the new directives introduced by IFAB and already enforced during the World Cup.

🟥 WHAT HAPPENED

In first-half stoppage time, it all started with a melee following a foul on Isidro Pitta: several players exchanged words and, during the confrontation with Turkey’s Mert Muldur, Paraguay’s number 10 was seen covering his mouth with one hand.

The former Sassuolo defender immediately pointed out the gesture, referee Ivan Barton was called over by VAR and, after reviewing the footage, showed a straight red card. Images of Almirón’s stunned reaction quickly went viral, but the decision was not related to the words spoken by the player, rather to the gesture itself during the confrontation with his opponent.

🆕 THE NEW IFAB RULE

Since April, IFAB has introduced a specific rule aimed at cracking down on offensive, discriminatory, or otherwise unverifiable behavior during on-field arguments. As specified by Calcio e Finanza, the regulations state that a player may not cover his mouth with his hand, arm, or shirt while addressing an opponent in a confrontation.

The goal is to prevent any insults or inappropriate expressions from being hidden from cameras and disciplinary bodies. For this reason, the simple act of covering the mouth during an altercation is considered a violation punishable by a red card. Almirón’s case is the first time the rule has been applied at a World Cup.

🔙 THE PRESTIANNI-VINICIUS PRECEDENT

The new provision stems from the case involving Gianluca Prestianni during the Benfica-Real Madrid match, the first leg of the Champions League round of 32. On that occasion, the Argentine talent covered his mouth with his shirt while speaking to Vinicius Jr during a heated exchange on the pitch. The incident sparked a huge media storm: Prestianni was accused of directing racist remarks at Vinicius Jr, and UEFA decided to punish him with a six-match suspension.   

It was precisely that precedent that pushed international bodies to introduce a specific rule against using hands, arms, or a shirt to cover the mouth during on-field arguments. From that moment on, FIFA and IFAB worked on a rule change that would ensure greater transparency in communication between players.

A rule that has now found its most dramatic application with the red card shown to Almirón, one that is destined to become an important precedent. The image of his disbelief will likely remain one of the defining images of this World Cup, a new development that has already sparked debate among fans, insiders, and tournament protagonists alike and that, after the Turkey-Paraguay case, will be watched even more closely in the coming matches.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.

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