*Official* English Football Season 2008-2009

[BoyBrumby]

Loving TTB's gifs; especially the last one. Didn't realise quite what a ringer for Uncle Fester the ref was.

The away goals rule needs to change for such results.

Nah, I disagree. It's the same rule for both teams. If it was dispensed with all it would mean is more penalty shoot-outs.

What I dislike is that horrible half-way house we have here in the League Cup when away goals don't count at the end of the 90, but do after extra-time. Either have them or not. It's a no-brainer if only only team needs to score in the additional period that the other team aren't going to pour forward.

 

[GIMH]

When they got rid of away goals in the play-offs in 2004 they went goal crazy, best play-offs I've ever watched. Interestingly the games that did go to pens were won by the teams that would have lost on away goals.

 

[Uppercut]

Barca scored more goals than Chelsea?

"In the event of a tie, away goals will count double."

So... kind of

 

[Magrat Garlick]

What I dislike is that horrible half-way house we have here in the League Cup when away goals don't count at the end of the 90, but do after extra-time. Either have them or not. It's a no-brainer if only only team needs to score in the additional period that the other team aren't going to pour forward.

That's bizarre. "OK, chaps, have 120 minutes to score your away goals, doesn't matter that we only gave the other team 90."

 

[James]

Didn't see the game but have watched the highlights and read the reports, and boy that referee is an absolute joke.

He should never be allowed to ref another European game IMO. We talk about performance in our every day work-life and making the mistakes he did, that's a sackable offense for that ref IMO. I can fully understand the Chelsea players going off at him after the game, and it makes a mockery of the semi-final and even the final as Barcelona certainly don't deserve to be there.

I really hope Man Utd beat Barcelona so this years Champions League is remembered for more than a clearly not up to standard referee.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Didn't see the game but have watched the highlights and read the reports, and boy that referee is an absolute joke.

He should never be allowed to ref another European game IMO. We talk about performance in our every day work-life and making the mistakes he did, that's a sackable offense for that ref IMO. I can fully understand the Chelsea players going off at him after the game, and it makes a mockery of the semi-final and even the final as Barcelona certainly don't deserve to be there.

I really hope Man Utd beat Barcelona so this years Champions League is remembered for more than a clearly not up to standard referee.

Indeed so.

It's very irksome that Barca won because now it looks like sour grapes, where the fact is even if his decisions hadn't have cost Chelsea the tie they would still be howlers.

Made me think of the 2003 rugby union WC final, actually. "Collapsing" Al Baxter managed to hoodwink the penalties out of Andre Watson that very nearly cost us the game. They didn't, but Woodward (quite correctly IMHO) pointed out these official errors. The calls were just as wrong, but happily justice was served.

If Chelsea had've won I hope there would still be as much fuss because it's just not good enough. Particualrly when, in video replays, there's such a simple and cheap solution too. The average EPL/CL game has about two dozen cameras trained on it anyway, so a TMO isn't going to cost any extra.

 

[James]

If Chelsea had've won I hope there would still be as much fuss because it's just not good enough. Particualrly when, in video replays, there's such a simple and cheap solution too. The average EPL/CL game has about two dozen cameras trained on it anyway, so a TMO isn't going to cost any extra.

For sure, these games are watched by billions of people around the world, and for the night to be ruined by the referee is a disgrace.

TMO just has to come in now, but should have come in years ago. Technology is there to be used!

 

[Craig]

That is priceless

 

[grecian]

Frankly don't give a **** about how bad the refereeing is, the way players (from all teams) carry on when things go against them is ****ing disgraceful. If I was a referee and I had players yelling at me and manhandling me, I'm afraid I'd just snot one of the 75-80kg ****wits into next week, and that'd be the end of it.

Surely there has to be a FIFA directive making it illegal for players to touch match officials? If there isn't one, they should make it an automatic red card. It's ****ing appalling.

Umm, look at what I was replying too, I was talking about the meedja reaction, wasn't defending the players.

They behaved in the petulant, spoilt, twatty way that top Prem teams always do, IMHO. This was more justified then most, I thought, but still disgraceful. I'd ban them all for six months.....

 

[Magrat Garlick]

At the end of the day, he's probably earned more than I will all month to referee this match, so yeah, missing that one is a shocker.

Will pull up on this. For 2007 the best-paid Norwegian ref earned about £55k before tax for a full season's work + his work outside the game.

 

[duffer]

After the game, striker Didier Drogba could not control his emotions and called Ovrebo a "disgrace", and Bosingwa has now echoed the Ivorian's frustration.

"This referee was bought. I do not know if he is a referee or a thief. There are no words to describe the person that was on the pitch here," he told RTP after the game.

Oh gawd, please UEFA, please go full throttle at these crybabies. My my, there really isnt much class at that club is there?

 

[GIMH]

Will pull up on this. For 2007 the best-paid Norwegian ref earned about £55k before tax for a full season's work + his work outside the game.

Did that ref get European games? fair enough if so

Still, £55k is a lot of money to earn in a year, such poor performance is inexcusable

 

[Loony BoB]

I wonder why Drogba thinks the ref decided the outcome of the game when he missed what I'm told were absolute sitters. If that's the case, isn't it him who decided the outcome of the game as much as anyone out there?

Quick, Drogba! To the scapegoatmobile!

 

[Tom Halsey]

Having now seen all the incidents in question, I actually can't quite believe all the fuss.

The Adibal penalty was definitely inside the box, but wasn't a foul anyway. The Drogba one was the one that actually was a penalty IMO. Both handballs were accidental, although the Eto'o shout was the better one because he's an idiot for having his arms above his head, still accidental though.

 

[cpr]

Loving TTB's gifs; especially the last one. Didn't realise quite what a ringer for Uncle Fester the ref was.

My first thought was '**** me, Chelsea cant even win when Ray Wilkins is the ref!'

 

[BoyBrumby]

Having now seen all the incidents in question, I actually can't quite believe all the fuss.

The Adibal penalty was definitely inside the box, but wasn't a foul anyway. The Drogba one was the one that actually was a penalty IMO. Both handballs were accidental, although the Eto'o shout was the better one because he's an idiot for having his arms above his head, still accidental though.

Don't want to drag this out, but you must be watching a different game. Even the ref himself has now admitted he had a shocker & Pique has said that the ref got the shout for his handball wrong. From The Guardian:

The referee is understood to have told the Uefa match delegate after the game that he made "significant mistakes" over the course of the game.

Pique later conceded that the ball had struck his hand. "The referee decided it wasn't a penalty, and sometimes it's wrong,"

 

[Jono]

Can someone clarify the handball rule to me.

So often in indoor soccer its called hand ball when someone smashes the ball into someone's hand, yet they clearly had no intention at all of using their hands.

What is the rule with regards to intention?

 

[Agent TBY]

Can someone clarify the handball rule to me.

So often in indoor soccer its called hand ball when someone smashes the ball into someone's hand, yet they clearly had no intention at all of using their hands.

What is the rule with regards to intention?

It's handball if hand hits ball, but it's not when ball hits hand.

IIRC.

 

[Magrat Garlick]

The definition in the rules is "deliberate". That is usually interpreted (by commentators anyway) as hand moving towards the ball, as TBY said.

Beeb interviews a ref who tries to explain it

 

[Tom Halsey]

Don't want to drag this out, but you must be watching a different game. Even the ref himself has now admitted he had a shocker & Pique has said that the ref got the shout for his handball wrong. From The Guardian:

The referee is understood to have told the Uefa match delegate after the game that he made "significant mistakes" over the course of the game.

Pique later conceded that the ball had struck his hand. "The referee decided it wasn't a penalty, and sometimes it's wrong,"

Pique didn't say the ref got it wrong, he said the ball struck his hand. There's a big difference there, especially given his hand/arm didn't move towards the ball and his reaction time between Anelka flicking the ball on and the ball hitting his arm was basically non existent.

Penalties for handball basically shouldn't exist, because the definition is that the handball must be deliberate, and no-one is stupid enough to handle the ball in the penalty area deliberately, except for saving a certain goal. There is the odd exception where someone just has a brain freeze but it's pretty rare.