Gabriel Gudmundsson squared up against Leeds United teammate Ao Tanaka when Sweden met Japan in their final group game of the World Cup on Thursday night.
The match ended in a 1-1 draw, and both Japan and Sweden were confirmed to reach the final 32 of the competition, ensuring Leeds players will be involved in the knockout stages.
Gudmundsson has had a few troubles ahead of the World Cup due to injuries and illness. However, he has started each of Sweden’s three group games and even played as a centre-back against Japan.
However, the Leeds star and several of his Sweden teammates were fuming about the actions of referee Ivan Barton during the 1-1 draw against Japan.
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Leeds United star slams the World Cup referee
FIFA has introduced hydration breaks in each half due to the heat in the United States and Mexico during the World Cup. However, it has been slammed, as many feel it just serves a commercial purpose.
Players get one break in each half to hydrate to deal with the heat in the United States, and the rules were the same for the draw between Sweden and Japan.
However, the flashpoint emerged when Sweden players went to drink some water as their teammate Isak Hien was receiving treatment for an injury.
Barton told the Sweden players not to drink water as they already had one hydration break in each half, and this happened several times.
The Swedish players were left angry by the referee preventing them from drinking water, and Gudmundsson slammed Barton following the match.
He insisted that it’s natural that players will look to hydrate when they get an opportunity while a teammate receives treatment.
Gudmundsson told Swedish daily Expressen: “I actually didn’t understand anything.
“Our player is down, and you can go and fill up a little. I actually didn’t understand what they were doing there.”
Hydration breaks could be introduced in the Premier League
While some of the United States cities needed hydration breaks due to the heat, there are several other cities in the US and Canada where the weather has not been a problem.
However, FIFA have uniformly introduced the breaks in every game, regardless of the weather, and Marcelo Bielsa has already criticised it.
There is a feeling that this is another way FIFA are trying to generate ad revenue, and several broadcasters are showing commercials during these three-minute breaks in each half.
It is almost certain that football bodies across leagues will study the financial impact of these hydration breaks, and if FIFA ends up earning significantly more in ad revenue, expect such breaks to be eased in domestic leagues.
It would be no surprise if the Premier League end up introducing hydration breaks as a norm if the financial incentive to do is too large to ignore.
The PL should not even be contemplating ‘hydration breaks’ where coaches can hold tactical talks with their players. In there place they should consider placing water where the spare footballs are placed, accessible to all players when needed, or a break in play for an injury etc.