The referee thread: discuss referees and their decisions

Still disagree on the first point. But yes he should have let them back on.

But Barca writing to UEFA? What's that about? U feel Barca get a rough deal with officiating? Did you write after Ovrebo?
 
Two things on this:

1. Why not? A midfielder is not allowed to run into another midfielder after they've passed and just take them out

Normally when a shot is wide of goal, the play stops. When a pass is made in the midfield the game does not stop. So that's why a FK is usually given outside the box. Not to mention that many tackles that are FK outside the box somehow isn't anything if it's inside the box for some unknown reason. If the ball doesn't go wide, but doesn't go in the net either, you often see penalties awarded in these cases.

It is also quite easy to see when a striker (player) has both time and balance to avoid the oncoming GK, but stays put on purpose. I see no reason to award those bastards anything tbh, because it's clearly not very sporty.

2. What is excessive? Is making him flip not at least a little over the top ;)

I'm sure you're capable of figuring that out for yourself.
 
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IMO it is a serious myth that Barcelona is continuously advantaged. Just like with most big clubs they tend to be advantaged when there is doubt. This happens with every big club, somehow you got to earn that.

What i don't understand is that people see it for other clubs, but not for their big club. If Spurs play Fulham, when in doubt the ref will often advantage Spurs. When Spurs play Real Madrid or Barcelona, then those clubs will often be advantaged when in doubt. That is the natural way of things. It shouldn't happen, but it's not the end of the world either.
 
I see Prem refs are getting careless again with dangerous challenges. After that horrible tackle by the Wigan player (McAuley? What's his name?), yesterday there was a horrible one by Holt - and that went unpunished too.

If things go on like this we will see more leg breaking tackles again.
 
I agree with that. Holtby should at least have had a yellow card.
Refs are also there to be protect players. There is that strange "culture" in English football that the game should be overphysical, bordering on the dangerous.
 
BVB -:- Malaga
Craig Thomson (SCO)

Galatasaray -:- Real Madrid
Stéphane Lannoy (FRA)

Barcelona -:- PSG
Björn Kuipers (NED)

Juventus -:- Bayern
Carlos Velasco Carballo (ESP)


Still no Skomina, one of best refs...
 
Indeed there's this culture of bring too physical, this is allowed by refs and widely encouraged by managers. It's well documented that some managers raise hell on a defender who doesn't get "stuck in" at every opportunity and they tell their players to "get on their faces". I'm all for being competitive and playing with intensity, but they go overboard in the English league and the line between physicality and violence sometimes becomes blurred.

Sometimes I think England would have more talented and highly skilful players (especially creative midfielders) if only the referees protected more this kind of player in their domestic league. It's a theory I have anyway.
 
Indeed there's this culture of bring too physical, this is allowed by refs and widely encouraged by managers. It's well documented that some managers raise hell on a defender who doesn't get "stuck in" at every opportunity and they tell their players to "get on their faces". I'm all for being competitive and playing with intensity, but they go overboard in the English league and the line between physicality and violence sometimes becomes blurred.

Sometimes I think England would have more talented and highly skilful players (especially creative midfielders) if only the referees protected more this kind of player in their domestic league. It's a theory I have anyway.

I do agree with this. Plus, when England go to play international matches, they wouldn't face so many red cards and problems with the refs. In all the world the game is played under similar circumstances, but in England it seems you have to risk your leg and you opponent's at every tackle, which in my oppinion is silly.

But that comes from someone who's not that fond of physical play. I will always prefer a natural born talent than a natural born athlete in football.
 
Still disagree on the first point. But yes he should have let them back on.

But Barca writing to UEFA? What's that about? U feel Barca get a rough deal with officiating? Did you write after Ovrebo?

It's a common practice of clubs when referees do blatant technical mistakes. We're not talking about a case of appreciation or seeing/not seeing a play, but plainly an ignorance of the rules.

Referees do right and wrong all the time, but big teams tend to be favoured for 3 reasons:

- Referees are afraid of doing mistakes against big clubs that have big media back-up
- Bigger teams tend to attack more so they generate more dubious plays that can be thrown in their favor.
- Sometimes the ref just does wrong.

But one thing is to judge badly a penalty and another one NOT KNOWING the rules properly. This is unacceptable in a competition as this one. Imagine a referee disallows a goal for off-side in a throw in. We're talking about this kind of mistake.

So the case is important enough to have something reported to UEFA, and Barcelona has all the right to do so. Something that the club has done only twice during the Champions League, just as other clubs have done.

PS: Funny how the Ovrebo ref is always mentioned against Barcelona, and the same people ignore what happened in the first round of that leg, or what happened at San Siro when Barcelona was denied a legal goal, a legal penalty and an offside goal (even more blatant than Ibra's) by Milito that finally put Inter in the final. I guess Inter didn't write after Benquerença (the portuguese ref friend of Mourinho that whistled the match because of the volcano)?

Do you remember the match at London in which Barcelona was denied 2 legal goals and a penalty against Arsenal only to loose the match in the last 10 minutes? Most Arsenal fans only remember Van Persie sending off in the second leg, and forget about the abysmal ref against Barcelona in the first leg. It's easy to remember only half of the story, as it happens to you every time Barcelona is mentioned.

Yes, there have been a lot of matches in which Barcelona has been crucified by the ref. And a lot of matches in which the ref has helped us. I don't think there's a single club in the champions who's been more benefited than the rest. If you look at the last 15 champions, all of them have had some decisions in their favor sometime in the way. It's just part of the "luck" you need to win this trophy.

I know I might be just as biased, but at least I try to stay objective and not let my judgement be clouded by passion when I write here. As I said, I think the result was fair.
 
I feel like if this happened in football it'd be a red card and bans. Just shows how much better the relationship is between refs and players in some sports, and how confrontational authorities have let that become in football:

http://bbcsporf.lockerdome.com/articles/107021039

(for those too lazy, a celebrating basketball player literally punches a ref in the groin, but they all laugh it off)
 
I agree 100% with you on that. Football has become a sport that allows too much for confrontation, tension and passion and it's becoming harder to just enjoy the sport at its best. I have had the same feelings when I watch the NBA or any other sport in which the referees can TALK with the players and players go to TALK (not to moan) to them.

That's why I suggested earlier on that the REF could review a TV Replay on its own when he wanted. He would automatically gain respect amongst the players, cheaters and divers would be caught more often, etc... I think that improving the referees and the relationship between them and the players, and improving the players attittude is more needed in the sport than the technology itself!
 
I'm gonna be redundant with my statement here, but... what a knob head this Mike Dean. We should't even be surprised anymore.

He just gives his stamp of approval for guys like Ashley Young to carry on diving. What a ridiculous booking of Kompany.

And then Clichy was unmarked and ready to cross into the box and he blew the whistle for half time!! haha
I don't recall seeing something like that.

What a despicable, pathetic little gimp he is, Mike Dean.
 
I'm gonna be redundant with my statement here, but... what a knob head this Mike Dean. We should't even be surprised anymore.

He just gives his stamp of approval for guys like Ashley Young to carry on diving. What a ridiculous booking of Kompany.

And then Clichy was unmarked and ready to cross into the box and he blew the whistle for half time!! haha
I don't recall seeing something like that.

What a despicable, pathetic little gimp he is, Mike Dean.

You forgot the bit where he is openly card happy.. with everything.. ever...
 
I'm gonna be redundant with my statement here, but... what a knob head this Mike Dean. We should't even be surprised anymore.

He just gives his stamp of approval for guys like Ashley Young to carry on diving. What a ridiculous booking of Kompany.

And then Clichy was unmarked and ready to cross into the box and he blew the whistle for half time!! haha
I don't recall seeing something like that.

What a despicable, pathetic little gimp he is, Mike Dean.

He's a ref that makes things about him. He's making bad calls on both sides in this match.

Shouldn't have blown up before the cross at the end BUT, the cross was also terrible. Not as bad that Everton match a while back.

There's going to be a sending off here, and it's not been dirty at all. It's the Mike Dean show so far...
 
Yeah, you're spot on. Look at the amount of bookings in the end! Last 5 or so minutes were a 1:1 card per minute ratio. Ridiculous. This guy shouldn't be officiating at this level.
 
On the topic of Mike Dean, why didn't Ryan Giggs receive a yellow card?

He made numerous fouls throughout the game and was equally involved in the tustle that saw Barry (I think?) receive a yellow.

Also, the Kompany booking was a sham. Made little to no contact with Young at all.
 
On the topic of Mike Dean, why didn't Ryan Giggs receive a yellow card?

He made numerous fouls throughout the game and was equally involved in the tustle that saw Barry (I think?) receive a yellow.

Also, the Kompany booking was a sham. Made little to no contact with Young at all.

This is one of those times where you could question the decisions all night long, but you'll always come to thesame cconclusion Mike Dean is a moment stealing ref, he didn't intend to help the game he wanted to book players as and when it would seem most convenient to him. For examples some of the yellows in the first half where identical to challenges left unpunished during the second, useless.
 
Also another good example of one of my big bug bears - why we can't play with 'real time'. The final few minutes of the match went along the lines of:
89th Minute - Big fuss over nothing with Silva going down and United not putting it out and all the players walking around, then laughing. Football played? 0 minutes
90th Minute - Fairly nasty foul on Young, free kick to United, Young needs treatment and gets subbed. Football played? 15 seconds.
91st Minute - Foul on Aguero on half way line. Players walk to free kick. Toure walks to sidelines, has a drink. Tevez eventually gets substituted off. Football played? 0 minutes.
92nd Minute - Actual football is briefly played, until about halfway through when Valencia fouls Barry. Free kick. Footall played? 30 seconds.
93rd Minute - Some more football is kind of played, resulting in a United corner. Probably 45 actual seconds of football!
94th Minute - United finally get everyone forward, take the corner, whistle goes about 5 seconds after. Maybe 10 seconds of football.

So in the last 6 minutes of the match, the ball was in play for maybe 2 minutes, if that.

I know it's often the case and City were being smart (and United stupid) but it's just hilarious. The ref gave 4 minutes of added time which by my count was actually less than a minute of 'ball in play time'. It's all a sham.
 
Injury time is all about time wasting really. 88th minute mark becomes the end of a game.Usually the losing team just throw crosses into the box and that didn`t happen, due to fake injuries and so call I`m mad let me pick a fight to stall the game. Arsenal on the weekend was being bombed with crosses for 10 minutes in the closing part of the game. I was hope for that tonight as a neutral.
 
Hey, at least Mike Dean didn't blow the final whistle as your player was about to cross into the box ;)
 
Magnificent effort from officials in this year's CL. Off the top of my head we've had:

1. Nani's red (for about 1% of people it's arguable, fine)
2. Ibra's ridiculously offside goal against Barca
3. Malaga's easy offside call against Dortmund to take the lead
4. Dortmund's winner had about 4 offside players, on 2 different occasions
 
Yilmaz's penalty decision in the first leg as well. It's been a poor Champions League in terms of officiating.
 
That 3rd Dortmund goal is one of the worst (non)decisions I've seen for a long time.

I'd be going absolutely mental if I was a Malaga fan
 
4. Dortmund's winner had about 4 offside players, on 2 different occasions

When the cross first came, there was one or two players offside.
After that Santana was arguably offside when he thumped it home.

EDIT: Santana wasn't offside because the ball came from the keeper, if the ball hadn't come from the keeper it would be offside because of some rule that says there has to be two defenders behind the keeper to kill the offside line.

EDIT2: The ball actually didn't touch Willy, but it looks like it from side angle...
 
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Also, as with my post from the derby last night, the ref in the Dortmund game added 4 extra minutes, and blew at 94:03.

In those 4 minutes 2 goals were scored. Ref added 3 seconds!
 
Eeeeesh, it's on a free kick too so the linesman HAS to be level:

BHcAI9XCMAASnxd.jpg
 
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