Werder Bremen midfield engine Torsten Frings will not be available for Germany's semi-final clash with Italy on Tuesday evening in Dortmund. The FIFA disciplinary committee handed Frings a two match ban after he was accused of ungentlemanly conduct against Argentina's Julio Cruz after their quarter final clash.
Luckily for the 29 year old, the suspension for the second game has been put back on six months probation, which means that Frings can play in the final or third place play-off. To add insult to injury the midfield backbone will also have to pay a cash fine of 5,000 Swiss Francs.
The decision was met with criticism in Bremen. General Klaus Allofs said from Norderney on Monday: "It's a very, very hard decision to suspend a player for the World Cup semi-final after a squable during such an important tournament." Head coach Thomas Schaaf added: "Naturally from our distanced position it's very difficult to get a clear picture of what actually happened but that is a very tough penalty for a player who has proven over years to be nothing but a fair sportsman."
From a performance point of view, Frings suspension would probably mean a place in the starting eleven for his Green-White colleague Tim Borowski. "I should imagine that Tim will get his chance now. From that position he can, from begin on, help to put the Italians under imense pressure", claimed Klaus Allofs.
German Team manager Oliver Bierhoff was informed of the FIFA decision on arriving in Dortmund with the national team: "We are disappointed. We were of the opinion that there were decent grounds to believe that Torsten Frings would be aquited. The pictures showed the referee and assistants be be standing alongside Frings. From our position we see it as a decisive situation. We can do no more now than to accept the decision. We are now intending to set our sights and concentrate on the Italy match and are optimistic that Torsten will be back in our ranks for the final."
Frings was judged on the evidence of television pictures. The referee, Lubos Michel from Slovakia, did not act at the moment of the events on Friday in Berlin after Germany had put the South Americans out in a penalty shoot-out.
FIFA's disciplinary committee containing Marcel Mathier (Switzerland), Jan Peeters (Belgium) und Mehmet Spaho (Bosnia-Herzegovina) accussed Frings based on paragraph 48 of the disciplinary rulings with ungentlemanly conduct. Due to provocation from an opponent, the suspension is only for two games.