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Football Federation Australia should throw the book at Dean Bouzanis for the offensive slur he aimed at Besart Berisha in Saturday’s Melbourne derby.
There’s no need to repeat what Bouzanis said – Fox Sports’ cameras picked it up loud and clear – and Melbourne City reacted promptly to what was always going to be a major talking point.
The club apologised for Bouzanis’ actions in a statement released on Sunday morning and revealed they would make a formal apology to both Melbourne Victory and Berisha.
“Bouzanis admitted making the remarks out of ignorance; however, has since understood the seriousness of his comments.”
“Once informed of the gravity of his actions, Bouzanis committed to redressing the offence at the earliest opportunity,” read the statement.
That’s all well and good – but Bouzanis has got form.
And if he was genuinely ignorant of the meaning of his grubby outburst, why say it in the first place?
It’s a bit hard to believe the boy who cried wolf when Bouzanis has already attracted complaints from rival coaches John Aloisi and Paul Okon for his over-the-top antics on the pitch.
The least the Match Review Panel should do is hand Bouzanis a minimum of a five-game suspension, which not only robs City of their first-choice goalkeeper, but also opens the door for former Danish international Thomas Sorensen to reclaim the number one spot.
Bouzanis’ slur took the gloss off what was a breathtaking finale to the derby, with Tim Cahill’s red card – when he wasn’t even on the pitch – causing yet another headache for City.
They’re now without an incredible six players through suspension for next Saturday’s visit of Brisbane Roar, with Cahill joining skipper Bruno Fornaroli, Luke Brattan, Fernando Brandan, Osama Malik and Manny Muscat on the suspended list – and that’s before the MRP deals with Bouzanis!
Like it or not, City are rapidly developing a reputation as one of the most poorly behaved teams in the league, and Cahill’s running commentary with referees isn’t helping.
The derby itself didn’t explode into life until the hour mark when Bouzanis saved a penalty from Berisha, before the floodgates well and truly opened.
Neil Kilkenny should feel hard done by to have seen his opener ruled as an own goal by Alan Baro, before Berisha – who else? – equalised, and Victory scored their controversial winner through another City own goal.
City will cry about the manner of Victory’s winner until the cows come home, but Fox Sports analyst Mark Rudan was right when he pointed out that had Muscat simply held his ground and maintained his position, Berisha would have invariably been ruled offside.
At any rate, Victory’s fightback maintains their slim premiership hopes, not least because Sydney FC were held to a scoreless draw by Brisbane Roar on Friday night.
A draw was just about the right result in humid conditions in Brisbane, with both keepers making a string of important saves.
The Sky Blues will be the happier of the two sides to come away with a point, as their long unbeaten streak continues.
Elsewhere, Western Sydney Wanderers recorded just their fourth win of the season over Wellington Phoenix in front of a small crowd in New Plymouth, while Perth Glory recorded a gripping 3-2 win over the Newcastle Jets.
The merits of taking A-League games to regional centres will surely come under scrutiny once again following Central Coast’s 2-1 win over Adelaide United in oppressively hot conditions in Canberra, with Canberra United’s W-League semi-final against Melbourne City pushed back to an 8pm kick-off because of the heat.
The AFLW will eat the W-League alive because the FFA continues to treat women’s football as an afterthought, but at least the game’s governing can get one thing right.
They can make an example of Dean Bouzanis and suspend him for at least five matches.
There’s no place in our society for ethnic slurs – especially on a football pitch.