ESPN Soccernet - Correspondents - Manchester United

Posted by Mark Payne on 05/09/2009

I am fed up of hearing about the "four stonewall" penalty appeals. Let's share some hard facts. Twice now Chelsea have been eliminated from Europe and launched vitriolic attacks at the officials in charge. On both occasions the referees in question, guys trying to do very difficult jobs under intense pressure, have received death threats from Chelsea fans. Anders Frisk retired immediately and Tom Henning Ovrebo was snuck out of the country under armed guard. Clearly, this is unacceptable.

In 1985 English clubs were banned from European competition for the disgraceful actions of English fans at the European Final. The issuing of death threats over a sporting match is exactly the kind of neanderthal behaviour that cannot be tolerated.

There should be a full inquiry launched immediately, by Chelsea Football Club, UEFA and the police, into the circumstances behind these death threats and punishment should rain down on the perpetrators with the full force of God.

If the fans of your club bring the game into disrepute you are responsible for their actions and liable for the consequences. Recently in Italy there have been bans imposed on travelling fans at several grounds and again I cite the ban on English clubs in the 80s.

The ramifications of this, if left alone, are potentially horrendous. I strongly recommend that Chelsea are banned from European competition until such time that they can prove able to control the actions of their fans.

If we live in a world where a man's life is in danger because he did not award a penalty kick then something is gravely amiss. I hope action is taken soon.

Comments

Posted by Tito on 05/09/2009

Good post...

Not only are their players acting like total fools but their fans as well... and on top of that the club is supporting Drogba's actions!! That sir is a "fucking disgrace". These players and team are Professionals... Act like it!

I personally am tired of hearing them cry about this STILL, you should never ever let the game be left up to whether the ref made a right call or not.... EVER. I'm glad the Chelsea tactics of scoring a goal and parking it in front of the net have finally bit them in the ass.

I do agree that some sort of "police" action should follow up. I wouldn't go to far as to ban Chelsea from competition. I'm sure UEFA can find some other suitable punishment.

Posted by kb on 05/09/2009

not to mention chelsea had their chances. if drogba had score at least one of the sitters he had it wouldn't have come down to the ref's decision. why don't the fans and players threaten him instead(escobar, though that's wrong too). the ref was horrendous but when you are one goal up at home against 10 men you don't let the ref be the decider. and oh that red card was not even a foul, but chelsea couldn't take advantage of the unfair advantage handed to them by the ref. get over it man utd vs barca 6-1 man utd.

Posted by Ronald Kow on 05/09/2009

Chelsea blame everyone ... except themselves. It is very easy to win games even when you have a "hostile" referee who turn down 100 'stonewall' penalty appeals. Just score a few more goals than your opponents. If you can't do that, then you don't deserve to win. As a die-hard Man U fan, I would feel the same way about my own team if the players -- God forbid -- behave the sme way. Drogba is an utter disgrace. He and Ballack should be slapped with a lengthy ban. When players behave like that it incites others to threaten the referee's life and this should never be tolerated. Such players and their clubs need to be taught a serious lesson!

Posted by Richard Attipoe on 05/09/2009

I disagree with all the comments made about Chelsea. I'm not a Chelsea fan buthaving watched the all the way in the US on ESPN I felt Chelsea was robbed. All referees should stop been incident instigators and act right when in-charge of games of this magnitude. All competitors in any sporting event work hard to achieve fame and it is heart-breaking when who don't win not by under-performing but by been robbed by the officials or in this case the referee.There is no justification for Ovrebo's action. He needs to sit down and watch the entire game that he handled and see for himself if he was fair with his decisions in all the calls he made for both teams. I agree we are all humans and do make mistakes but not these many mistakes in a very important match like this especially the host team. My advise for him is never handle a game like that in any part of Africa because he won,t be a living man to receive death threats because he would have been a dead man before he make it off the pitch

Posted by kb on 05/09/2009

my campatriot mr attipoe, nobody is saying the ref was fair. uefa should take part of the blame for handing such a ref a game of that magnitude. bad decisions went both ways. remember anelka's dive producing the red card for barca? if chelsea had won, the players wouldn't behave like that. they parked the bus in front of the goal against 10 men and in front of their own fans. imho that portrays inferiority to barca, it's utter disgrace for a big four team to think they are inferior to barca even on home soil.

Posted by Jonah Adams on 05/09/2009

For a game this big and strategic to the interest of the club, I think the Coach chose a wrong strategic: PLAY NO FOOTBALL, we all line in front of the goal and hope for a quick break.

The Barc team did not completely outplay Chelsea in that match other than having a higher percentage of ball possession, if they had chosen to play Good and Rounded Football am sure we would have had a different story to tell.

In business, you never wait for the regulator or the market to determine how you do your business, you define your model within the rules.

Chelsea chose a strategy and it failed.

Anyways, see you all in Rome!!!

Posted by Sanagy Nedup on 05/09/2009

Actually what the Chelsea Fan and players acted to the referee is a good lesson for all the refree in the world. Ofcourse i am not a fan of Chelsea but i feel mercy because they didn't get a single penalty kick out of somany mistake done by the bracelona players. Ofcourse one or two mistake is accetable that the referee has knowingly make a great mistake. I think he has got an sufficent money from bracelona to tolerate such an great mistake.

Posted by RJ on 05/09/2009

The Chelsea players' post game reactions were disgraceful. Chelsea conceded the goal, the referee did not hand the goal to Barca. If Chelsea cannot hold on against 10 men, or are looking for a penalty call from the ref to ensure qualification for the final, they do not deserve it. Fair play to Barca, they are the ones who battled the odds, persisted with their game plan, and won. After conceding an opportunist goal and losing a man who should not have been sent off, they maintained their belief in themselves right to the bitter end and came throgh, that my friends should be the story here. Good on Barcelona.

Posted by SE on 05/09/2009

Well hold on, Richard Attipoe. How can you say Chelsea was robbed after watching the game? Yes, Ovrebo had what was probably the worst game of his life, but he wasn't biased. He sent a Barcelona defender off when there wasn't even a foul committed! For me, this was the most offensive decision. The penalty appeals were just desperation from the Londoners. Chelsea played terrible, ugly football and they were lucky to even get the chance to face Barca with a 0-0 aggregate at home. The way they're playing and behaving, they have no business in the most important match in the world, the Champions League Finale.

Posted by Gawaya Tegulle on 05/09/2009

Excellent post, Mark. And with just the right tone. What was a disgrace was not the refereeing; it was the reaction of Chelsea players, fans and officials. After wasting all those free, God-given at the Nou Camp and at Stamford Bridge, then failing to defend your lead against 10 men; Chelsea have themselves to blame. Refs will always make mistakes. Man U was unfairly knocked out by Porto five years ago, when a perfectly clean Scholes goal was inexplicably ruled out for offside. Porto progressed in dubious fashion and won the cup. A clean penalty against Everton last month was denied us and at Arsenal, poor Darren Fletcher dismissed wrongfully. We took it all in stride without making noise. The sportsman true is the one who knows how to lose gracefully, no matter the pain. That is why I love Man U. Chelsea should be ashamed of all this ruckus. A six point deduction from their next Champions League campaign should be a good start, plus lengthy bans for Drogba and Ballack.

Posted by jacky on 05/09/2009

Excellent post again, Mark. i got 1 opninion onli if u say referee decision make chelsea team to lose with 11 vs 10 player n inside 93 minutes i say chelsea is sore loser...no complain coz chelsea dun wan to play football n wait for time...everything got advantage n disadvantage...chelsea dun got penalty but barca 10 men...all this decision is not good but fair enough with chelsea leading 1-0 up...chelsea wan to wait full time n later blaim referee for tat...Chelsea should have control themself..referee is a human being...must got mistake....all chelsea fans just get over it n play better next time tats all...no need CRY OUT LOUD n asking for pls giv them rematch or just giv them the trophy...the result is final watever the player did...be profesional...

Posted by Rishi Dayal on 05/09/2009

Great post, Mark. Refs should not have their life on the line because of a bad call (or calls). When it comes right down to it, Chelsea can only blame themselves. Drogba had many sitters that he should have easily put away. And also, if Chelsea can't even keep a lead against 10 men, they do not deserve to be in the final.

Posted by rocheyb on 05/09/2009

A Man Uted fan calling for Chelsea to be banned from Europe.

Try to show a bit more class, mate.

Posted by KiDD on 05/09/2009

CHELSEA FANS AND PLAYERS SHOULD GROW UP ..drogba should b punished hard ... what he did was unacceptable he should curse at himself for missing easy goals in both the 1st n 2nd games and if you see him play any little touch on him and its a foul how do you expect referees to do a good job when divers like him dive and cry if they dont get the call.. drogba is already at a mature age to be acting like he did n that my friends is why he isnt best player in the world potiential.

Posted by bill o connor on 05/09/2009

Watched the game from Canada. Typical Chelse. They continue to show disrespect to opponents which is a attitude developed by their previous Manager. Mr Chosen One. Next Wolves will kick their whining asses

Posted by Jeff Williams on 05/09/2009

Let's turn the tables for a moment. What would you be saying if the same happened to United in the final game? It was the poorest excuse for officiating of a game of this magnitude. I do not buy into UEFA conspiring to stop another all English final, after all, the official did make a horrible call against Abidal. You are correct in that death threats are inexcusable for any sporting event, and the actions of Drogba were clearly unacceptable (although you can understand his emotions).
As far as playing anti-football, Hiddink chose the best strategy to defeat Barcelona, and there is nothing in the rules stating that you can not play a "boring defensive game." The strategy was sound, Barcelona proved nothing through the 1-1 tie to demonstrate they were the superior team. They advance through the away goal rule; Hiddink's strategy failed.
That being said, good luck to Manchester United, show them that the EPL is the better league.

Posted by ovrebo on 05/09/2009

oh so blatant hypocrisy! even the "almighty" manchester united needs a penalty call (or two) to help open the floodgate!! remember the spurs game? a penalty/goal CHANGES a game!

a penalty is a penalty. it doesn't matter if the team plays like shite, hell ... if the opponent brings down a player/handle in the box on the 95th minute, its a penalty. there's no two ways about it. and please stop the holier than thou attitude, you're judging people from the comfort of your couch, drogba behaviour is inexcusable, but for you to tell that "if i'm in that situation, i'll behave professionaly" is bullshiite in the highest order!

Posted by Rob on 05/09/2009

If chelsea spent more time trying to score goals instead of defending the whole time they might have actually been able to put more than 1 lucky goal through. If they had been at all interested in playing football it wouldnt have come down to the issues of how a neutral ref would call a game between 2 "styles" of playing the game, although few could argue that chelsea showed a complete effort on both sides of the ball in both games.

Posted by Ben Stonnell on 05/09/2009

In regard to the initial comment - if what happened to Chelsea happened to any other substantial club around the world the same thing would have happened. Especially if it happened man utd, Chelsea we're robbed anybody who knows anything about football would be able to see that. By no means am I saying what has happened to the referees in the aftermath is correct but if you want to fix the problem stop being such a hypocrite and look at the problem on a wider scale rather than just rubbishing Chelsea.

Posted by Gabreal on 05/09/2009

Which planet are from Mark? Had this happened to Manchester United I would like to heve seen the behaviour of SAF and Rooney and CO. I believe it would have been a million times worse. Mark, you must have forgotton to take you medication so please do and leave opinions for others.

Posted by bishtelli on 05/09/2009

So sad to see Chelsea stoop down to this level. The ref had a bad game on both sides. So there were these "4" penalty calls missed for Chelsea, but there were also a bunch of calls that went for them. In the first half, there was a hand ball on Michael Ballack that was never called, and to me that was as much a penalty as the last Chelsea penalty claim. There was the red card, which is definitely a game changer, although in this case Chelsea failed to materialize. All their penalty claims came before the red card, so they did nothing the last 20 minutes. They were caught napping on the goal, and if iniesta hadn't scored, Barcelona would have deserved a penalty kick anyway for the miss kick from Essien. Anyhow, I hope Chelsea realize how badly they have tarnished their image with their classless display both during and after the game

Posted by Stevie Jaeye on 05/10/2009

In all of this I have never heard anyone mention the dirty words called "video replay". I don't buy conspiracy theories. I saw a human being have a poor game of officiating. But in a game of this magnitude, why not let the same video evidence we saw be used to by referees to get the call right. I wouldn't like the delays it would cause any more than you would, but I would much rather see valid penaties awarded and players not being sent off for non-fouls. I would rather see the right team be in the final, and this is not to say that Barca is not the right team. They did score that late goal a man down and earned a place in the final. I'm for some kind of video verification such as "challenges" allowed NFL coaches in USA.

Posted by ks on 05/10/2009

To end this Frustrating issue, USE TV replay.
FIFA, why so STUBBORN!
Wake up, FIFA.
If FIFA still insist not using TV replay, means there some fishy business around, right?

Posted by B on 05/10/2009

Drogba doesn't score, causes the extra time with his antics on the field, then behaves like a profane baby in front of millions. Bosingwa pulls down Henry in the box in 1st leg, doesn't bother to get back into position to clear Alves' cross on Barca's goal, but calls the ref a thief and says he's been bought. Blaming the ref for your own failures is a disgrace. If you told me that Drogba and Bosingwa had been paid to give the game to Barca, then I might believe it because it's more plausible. Drogba should be banned from CL for at least a year. No one wants to watch him roll around and moan like he's the chick in a Whitesnake video. This type of behavior is what keeps the game from truly taking off in the US. If ref's gave yellows for blatant diving like they're supposed to, he would've been suspended from match play a long time ago anyway. He was lucky to be playing in the 1st place. How long should fans suffer his bs? Ban him please. Death threats are criminal and must be prosecuted.

Posted by Awodein Akinola Noble on 05/10/2009

am anoother football fan in support that EUFA should take a sanction action on Chelsea ,nothing close to a fine ,maybe not banning them from european actin but the players involved should be seriously banned and any appropriate commesurate action by EUFA.
Top european plyers should realse that they are idols,role models and superstars in the eyes of thie fans and that actions they take especially the type Drogba reacted to and said on TV can cause an emotional display of dangerous thoughts from the fans that can lead to chaos.even if he felt the ref was unfair (in my opinion he was),that was no reason to put the law in his hands and use those harsh ords tat were clearly caught on tape worldwide which could have eventually stirred up the dead threat by some fans to the referee.as 4 video replay technolgy that was suggested by the chelsea boss,i would say no! not bcos am not an advocate 4 change but bcos the controversies at time add more spice and passion to the game.

Posted by strange on 05/10/2009

i don't know why soccer doesn't use video referee, it can save so many unnecessary argument and make things fair, it gives people impression that soccer prefers to stay old-fashioned and allows rooms for unfairness ...

also interesting to see some of the comments in this page ... wonder if man utd lost in similar way instead of chelsea, would Mark still be "fed up"?

Posted by azuka on 05/10/2009

i am a die hard chelsea fan and during scolari i also quite chelsea for rugby,funny but under guus i mean u can see the great diff and i felt really sad with the decision the ref made but after ten mins i could come to accept the defeat ,why?cus the world ,refs,uefa president and man u fans were all scared for chelsea`s pay back under guus,and for people who felt drogba and chelsea should have scored befor ninety mins which i felt was true too but because the lack of experience and emotions too,u cant aim or do things right when u watch ur right been taken away from u i mean those fouls commited and with speculations befor the match ,its demoralizing ..after the game i pledge my 100% trust and support to the club i once loved.long live u chelsae

Posted by Marc on 05/10/2009

Answering the post by strange:

If Man U lost like this, which happened on uncountable occassions already, then they are less likely to run out of the tunnel and chase down the ref having to be stopped by guards and staff. I also haven't recalled an incident where the ref was threated with death by man utd fans. Definitely the losing side and their fans would grumble and grouch but it stops somewhere.

People like Mark and myself are fed up because of behaviors displayed by players like Drogba. He just can't lose the match a little more graciously. What's the point of behaving like a hooligan on matchday and spuring the heat in the fans to boiling level then apologising later to say that he was a bad example? Grow up Dogba and grow up Chelsea.

Posted by ovrebo on 05/10/2009

Answering the post by Marc:

Care to share with us a few examples, Marc?

Posted by Martin S on 05/10/2009

I'm not a Chelsea fan, however I feel for them. That doesn't excuse the disgraceful conduct by Drogba and Ballack (always A bully). It does stink a bit the way the referee handled the game. Was it a case of not wanting another ManU-Chelsea final!! It has to come, the game's worth too much money now, electronic equipment and replays are the only way to prevent this from happening. Maybe the media doesn't want it as there would be less newsworthy articles. Good luck ManU in the final. Azuka, you talk utter crap!

Posted by hasan on 05/10/2009

All this talk about conspiracy against EPL final is a bunch of BS that doesn't merit any words. The behaviour of the players was a disgrace and I agree with you that they should be punished. The club doesn't deserve to be banned but should be fined for not controlling their players. And the management comes and says "we support the players" that disgraced the game. IMHO only 1 penalty claim was valid that of pique's handball. The rest were 50-50 calls that the refree rightly didn't call in a semi-final. Also Barcelona didn't score from the spot, it was from open play while they are a man down and I noticed that Barca's main stopper (Pique) was playing up as a forward/Midfeild during the last 10 or so minutes. That speaks about chelsea's gameplan. They should have gone for the kill and scored at least one more goal and then defended but they didn't and now they have to pay the price.

Posted by ehi on 05/10/2009

i don't believe there is any referee that wiil intentionally want to influence any game.That been said,the actions of chelsea players and fans were totally disgraceful last wed.against barcelona.This is the reward the chelsea organisation will continue to get for ever bringing that arogant,disrespectful and uncivilized oportunist,that call himself the chosen one to be the coach of chelsea.He made his bunch of idiots to believe that they are better than man u and he was always seeing himself in the same class as sir alex ferguson.Since he left chelsea,he has always concerned himself 90% with is happening in england to the extent that he is now a native who continue to forcast scores in all the weekend fixtures in the pl.Tell me which other talks about other teams even when they have nothing to do with inter than JOSE MOURINHO.Ilearnt he has his eyes set on man u after ferguson.Iknow he is dreaming and deluded it will certainly remain so.GO MAN U 3-1 OVER BARCA.

Posted by Richard on 05/10/2009

As a Man Utd fan, i would tell Chelsea to shut the fk up and respect the ref's decision and get their fans and players under control. But as a football fan, I can understand their reactions. If this happened to us, we this blog would have received thousands of negative comments on Mark's blog.

Personally I think Chelsea was robbed. And you'd expect UEFA to appoint a more experienced ref for a UCL semi-final! Maybe Mr Henning received more than just a 'CALL' on the day of the game.

Also like to thank Mr Platini for clearing up that he is happy any country's dominance like the 2000 all Spanish & 2003 Italian finals. EXCEPT it's never been 2 years CONSECUTIVELY!

2000: Real Madrid vs Valencia
2003: A.C. Milan vs Juventus

Posted by ken on 05/10/2009

Reaction of Chelsea players is a perfect example of how not to react, Ballack and Drogba especially. Though Hindsight is 20/20 it was exactly that, a reaction, an understandable reaction to a percieved injustice, but will correctly not go unpunished. I don't think the handballs were penalties, because they were not deliberate, more ball to hand imo. I thought the trip on Drogba in the first half was a penalty. Fairly clear. This and the late goal means unlucky Chelsea. On Fletchers sending off; if his red card gets resinded it's probably more ammunition for the ABUs. But if for example, Friedel can apply to get a red card overturned in the League, shouldn't the same procedures be available in Europe. makes sense eh?

Posted by lewis mary on 05/10/2009

The blues are lossing respect,uefa should strongly punish both the players involved most especially Drogba and Ballack,the club has to also be punished because they have failed to contral their players,they have to understand that in any competition there must be a winner and a losser,soccer is not war,if they want to fight let them go to Afhaganistan.long live manchester united.lewis kampala

Posted by Shahram on 05/10/2009

I'd be pissed off if this had happened to Man U but i'd also look at the performance of the team! So the ref made 4-5 really bad decisions that shattered chelsea dreams! How many sitters did Drogba miss?! About 4-5! Weren't those mistakes?! Shouldnt he be held responsible?! The goal that Barca scored was coz of a mistake by Bosingwa! He miskicked the ball!!! How can you do that at that level???!!! So I say this: Its always easy to blame it on the ref (justified or unjustified) but wether its chelsea, united, liverpool or arsenal if you getting paid over 100,000 pounds A WEEK!!!!!!! Then you better fuckin deliver!!!! Have any of you thought about how badly your forwards messed up?! Chelsea were 1-0 UP, AT HOME playing against 10 MEN!!! AND THEY STILL LOST! There's something wrong with that picture and I wouldnt blame it completely on the REF!

Posted by OSCAR(IKEDI) on 05/10/2009

THATS VERY CLEAR THAT THE REF DISAPPOINT EVERYONE(WATCHING THE MATCH) BUT BLAME SHOULD BE ON CHELSEA PLAYERS. HOW CAN SOMEONE WHO CALLED HIMSELF INTERNATIONAL PLAYER PLAY SURE A PRIMARY SCHOOL BALL(DROGBA) THAT GUY SHOULD BE GIVE FREE TO ANY CLUB THAT NEEDS HIM. UP MAN U (EBEANO) (BEST OF THE BEST) MOST VALUEABLE CLUB WITH MOST VALUEABLE PLAYER.RONEY MUST BE 2009 FOOTBALLER OF THE YEAR

Posted by Lincoln on 05/10/2009

Simple reaction: Badly called game, poorly defended by Chelsea, and more heart and drive shone by Barca. That is the simple part of the game. More complex: The handball was an incidental hit in the upper arm/shoulder, the send off was a horrid call, and the Chelsea coach should have kept control of his boys, because they acted like that:Boys. Not professional men. That is the difference. Once a match is done, it's in the books, and everyone should learn from their parts. UEFA should try to better train their refs or find a better control, Barca should show some tact and not waste a whole minute in clothes stripping celebration (which I found a distatsteful show better suited to schoolyard ball play), and the Chelsea coach should have coralled his overemotional players and ushered them into the locker room in order to prevent a disgrace. I am a Man Utd and Leeds Utd fan, from the US, who loves the game for the sake of the game, and find this whole episode to be a black eye to football.

Posted by Triputranto on 05/10/2009

I'm just wondering why Chelsea didn't have same fighting spirit like they did against Liverpool? their CL 2009 game (2nd leg quarter-final) I think is a best CL 2009 game ever, no doubt, Liverpool once almost had managed to crush away Chelsea, but Chelsea did amazing way to stop and sent off Liverpool, what a great game, I love football such that game. A Must See Game!! Too bad for Chelsea for didn't go to Rome, I'm just feeling bad they didn't have that spirit again.

Posted by Akin Adesola on 05/10/2009

Chelski were robbed. Yes. But did Chelski have the opportunity to kill off the game? Yes. Did they take it? No. Did they deserve to lose? Yes. Pure and simple. A champion gets the job done AGAINST ALL ODDS! Look at United over the last couple of matches. With perhaps the exception of the match against Villa, we have found the knack of killing the match off in the first half. Every other thing is an excuse. Take your chances when you get them, especially when you had the good fortune of playing against 10 men for 30 minutes! Barca kept going even when Chelski was dominant. One shot at goal, one goal. Game over. Over to Rome against United thank you.

Posted by Pommels on 05/10/2009

In all of the posts trying to explain away Drogba and Ballack's behavior, I still have not seen 1 that admits that physically accosting an official is a problem. Look at the vids and photos, Ballack strikes Ovrebo while chasing him and Drogba's intimidation in the tunnel is simple assault. I dont care how much you love Chelsea, can you really find this acceptable? I hope that every Chelsea fan that tries to gloss over this has a child that does exactly the same thing in a match with other 10 year olds. Then maybe you might understand why it is NOT acceptable.

Posted by peter on 05/10/2009

It is rather surprising that chelsea supporters and players are calling for the referee's head. Whatever the gravity of an incident in the eighteen area is, it does not lye with the players to force the referee to award penalty.Penalty award decision is an exclusive professional judgement of a referee. Players and supporters must accept that football can only development if and only if we cultivate the spirit of sportmanship and tolerance by living with the decisions of referees however bitter. Otherwise, the beautiful game of football will soon be forgotten. They are also human. By the way, congrats again, MU

Posted by jimi on 05/10/2009

although i'm a big united fan, i must say that chelsea deserved to be in the final. it's true that it was one of the worst referee i've ever seen since world cup 2002 (brazil vs turkey match) but i can't really blame them. the one should take the responsibility is FIFA. why not implemented technology into the game like in other sport such as in NBA, NFL, tennis, etc? what are they really scared of? fair play? i can understand why chelsea players pissed off about the game.

Posted by stephen on 05/11/2009

Your saying that chelsea should be banned from Europe? hahahah, if positions were reversed, your suggesting that you would not be complaining at all about this. A man united fan is of course not going to side with Chelsea. Chelsea were robbed, at least two of those were clear penalties and if they had been given, Chelsea would have been crusing at 2/3-0. Even though we missed our other chances, it is still unjust that not a single penalty was given

Posted by bobo on 05/11/2009

okay.

1. Ref made 2 legid bad calls for chelsea
2. Ref wrongly gave 1 red card for barca
3. Chelsea played about half the game with 1 man advantage and failed to capitalise
4. Drogba missed a sitter which would seal the game
5. We are all human, the ref can be wrong and SO can drogba!

Enough Said.

Lampard (who is supposed to mark iniesta when he scored) is smart enough not to complain and walk off or he'll be the one receiving death threats. Good job chelsea fans! good job........

Posted by the # 23 on 05/11/2009

i have always been the guy who backs up the ref but chelsea did deserve to get at least 2 clear penalty appeals given to them

Posted by Sam on 05/11/2009

I am a lowly, but loyal ManUtd fan, just enjoying the beautiful game. I love football, no doubt about that, but when I watch games like this one, I cant help but get pissed. Not at the referee, no, but at whoever who steps onto the pitch, claims to be a footballer, gets paid 100, 000 pounds per week, and still f**king cries like a baby whose candy is taken away. When you play a match of this magnitude, you gotta have your emotions in check, no? When you represent your high and mighty club, you gotta present your best self, no?

Losing doesn't mean you can blame it on anyone. Heck, losing means YOU and YOUR CLUB failed to perform! Any club that fails to perform does not deserve a win. IF you are lucky enough to KEEP your LEAD against 10 MEN, well, then congrats, I will enjoy watching you at the final, but if you are not, don't act like a baby. The world won't sympathize a baby like you. Grow up and come back next year, IF you are not banned.

YOU refers to who you think it refers to.

Posted by Jor ManU on 05/11/2009

Why we are still talking about Chelsea and Barca? We should be talking about Rome now. Be it whether the ref got it wrong. Be it whether Drogba cries like a baby. Be it The red card is given wrongly.

The Final is near and It will be ManU vs Barca.

I rather talk about the finals that the past. Life goes on no matter the ref is good or bad.
THE FINAL is STILL ON.

ManU for Life!

Posted by ovrebo on 05/11/2009

your beloved ronnie "f**king cries like a baby whose candy is taken away" sam, eventhough he "claims to be a footballer, gets paid 100, 000 pounds per week", when he got substituted yesterday.

Posted by Tom Ovrebo on 05/11/2009

I remember when players like Cantona and Di Canio went on lenghty bans for disrespect to fans and refs alike. UEFA should ensure that bans do prevent threats and bad behaviour. The Premier League campaign of "Get on with the game" seems not to have left an impression on Drogba & Co. What do you expect when in Africa, refs and fans are killed just because the game doesn't go the way you want it. The European "Respect" campaign must protect refs and fans. Afterall we're all humans and anyone can make a mistake.

Posted by D Ed on 05/11/2009

Great post guys... I only have 1 comment. Average Chelsea player salary per week = 70,000pound (guesstimation). Average Referee salary = 3,000 per month (again guesstimation).
So if a person who is paid less than 80 times should go through all this nonsense (death threat, removing him from big games or whatever punishment he should receive) because making a mistake, then all those millionaire players when they make a mistake like Drogba missing an open goal, diving to cheat the ref, elbow other players and etc... ehm i wonder what punishment should he (players) receive.

Posted by Rob on 05/12/2009

Just one last thing. Drogba got himself sent off in the last Final for slapping Vidic in the face. That is the one thing that caused Terry to be in the position of missing "the kick" because he wouldn't have been #5 otherwise. There was never an apology from Drogba for that nor was he never really held accountable by Chelsea fan even though he should have been.

It's a shame that Chelsea lost the game in the manner which they did; the entire officials' squad missed the Pique handball and that penalty would have made it 2-0 and put the game away. Still Ballack's protestations should have been an automatic yellow card the moment he bumped the referee and any additional protest from him should have seen him sent off. This is not the first time behavior like this has been attributed to the Blues and it, by the looks of it, won't be the last unless the entire culture of the team's make up is changed in the off-season...

Posted by Marc on 05/13/2009

Answering Posted by ovrebo 3 days, 5 hours ago

"Care to share with us a few examples, Marc?"

I think over the last 3 days or so there have been more than enough examples for you Mr Ovrebo.

Posted by sam on 05/13/2009

Ovrebo,

I have said that I am a fan of the team, not the man. If you regard Cristiano Ronaldo as Manchester United, and vice versa, then you can go cry like a 'baby whose candy is taken away' all you like. I don't care about Ronaldo and his rants against his own substitution. But at least he did not scream at the one responsible with his substitution, Sir Alex.

Yes, he gets paid and all, and the he underperforms and wants to prove himself on the pitch. That spirit wrong for you, mate? Maybe he didn't show it properly, correctly, but even you can see through it, can't you?

So, talking about spirit, Drogba and Ballack's spirit is admirable don't you think? They are willing to scream at an official, putting their reputation at stake, sparking death threats, for a loss they think the official has contributed to. Hmmm... I have never seen Ronaldo protest explicitly against any officials AFTER the game yet, but I may as well stand corrected.

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