FIFA takes no action over Neymar challenge

Jul 7, 2014 - 10:58 PM FIFA will not take action against the Colombia player who injured Neymar and ended the Brazil star's World Cup.

FIFA said its disciplinary panel "cannot consider this matter" under the rules because the match referee saw the challenge by Juan Camilo Zuniga.

"In this specific case, no retrospective action can be taken," FIFA said in a statement on Monday, because the incident "did not escape the match officials' attention".

In a separate decision, the panel also refused to consider a Confederation of Brazilian Football appeal against captain Thiago Silva's yellow card in the 2-1 win quarterfinals over Colombia on Friday in Fortaleza.

Thiago Silva's second caution of the tournament triggered a one-match ban which he will serve in the semifinals.

Brazil will therefore be without its best player and its captain against Germany on Tuesday in Belo Horizonte.

Neymar will be sidelined for about 45 days after sustaining a fractured third vertebra.

The panel studied video of Zuniga's 86th-minute challenge, where he kneed Neymar in the back when jumping into him at speed.

Zuniga apologised on Saturday.

Spanish referee Carlos Velasco Carballo did not show Zuniga a yellow card, and FIFA's disciplinary panel considered the incident judged on the spot.

The seriousness of an injury could not be weighed in a disciplinary decision, nor was mistaken identity a factor in the case, FIFA added.

"First and foremost, the chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee (Claudio Sulser) wishes to state that he deeply regrets the incident and the serious consequences on Neymar's health," the statement said.

Source: AAP