Thought this deserved a thread as basically Brazil have now lost their skipper, and everyone seems to (understandably) be focusing on Neymar.

I honestly do not think Da Silva did anything wrong.

It wasn't a physical challenge, in fact I think he was a bit surprised to have the goalie throw the ball in front of him.

It might not have been intentional but still deserved a yellow IMHO

Its a automatic yellow card when you do that even if it seems soft.

What I found ridiculous was that it was something so innocuous that got the referee to get his yellow card out of his pocket for the first time in the match. Apparently all the tackles flying in everywhere were fine!

His thoroughly deserved yellow card is possibly the most stupid way to be suspended from a semi-final in the history of the world cup and from a referee who had lost control of the game in the first few minutes. Thiago Silva must be very relieved the Brazilian media is focussing on Neymar's injury and not on him.

Do what though ?

I can not see what the foul was, he was running back, suddenly their goalie threw the ball up in front of him.

What is the deemed foul here ? Obstruction / challenging a goalie on a kick out (?). I thnk he was innocent of both either way.

Yes, but Thiago Silva's infringement directly and almost instantaneously led to a 'goal', forcing a weak, inadequate referee to take action. It takes a really special type of stupidity to do that. I expect Thomas Mueller is still laughing.

No, the keeper threw the ball up to kick it and Silva stepped across him . Have another look.

The keeper is still deemed to be in control of the ball and cannot be tackled.

Thanks for the answers above, I was guessing that was the supposed offence, but had not heard it clearly stated anywhere just that he was "daft".

I will have a few re checks later to see if he did deliberately run into the goalies path, though from memory I really felt he was very unlucky to have been judged to do so.

He clearly ran in front of the keeper to stop him from kicking the ball and so instigating a Columbian break with the Brazilian defensive unit mostly in the Columbian half.

That's a yellow card offence any day of the week.

Clear yellow card offence, ref was right.

blundering into the goalkeeper while he was taking the kick!
STILL AN IDIOT

This, but didn't he also kick the ball "away" after the whistle was blown to compound the issue.

you don't seem to be able to do it now. There was no foul - t don't think Tiago touched the goalie, and the ball was in mid air, so I don't think it should have been a booking

George Best did this to Gordon Banks, but the goal was disallowed
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2D8IW_3_6D8

(I thought he did it to Pat Jennings, but I can't find it, so it must have been the above one)

Here's some others
http://bobbyfc.com/?p=1984

He doesn't need to touch the goalie.

He interfered with play, simple as that. No doubt that it was a yellow card offence.

It wasn't a dead ball was it? I thought the goalkeeper was just clearing the ball out of his hand. See the links I just posted.

Is that the links to the disallowed goals by George Best and Henry?

It is an offence under current rules, a yellow card was the correct decision. Not sure what relevance George Best and Gordon Banks have to this.

Its actually been a feature of this tournament that most people - especially pundits - don't seem to realise there doesn't have to be ANY contact between players for a foul to be given - merely ATTEMPTING to kick, trip etc an opponent is a foul - that's not to say it will always be given obviously!

I think the ref had lost complete control and was going to book the next stupid infringement by any player.
Definate yellow card, he tried stopping the keeper start an attack. Stupid way to miss a semi-final.

Correct, had cards been dished out the same in those days, and under current rules, Best would have been booked.

Codeblue also makes a key point, the keeper is still deemed to be in possession.

Silva was correctly booked and the referees failure to book others for crude challenges is an irrelevance.