That was definitely a/never a red card

[albion]

The reaction of all the players knew the ref had plenty of form for a foot up sending off.
SAF was probably more devastated because he would have forewarned his team.

Saying that cheating is the norm so there was plenty of exaggeration from both players.

 

[mark st1]

.

Saying that cheating is the norm so there was plenty of exaggeration from both players.

Amen brother.

 

[Yellow Fang]

I think probably a yellow. It wasn't serious foul play. It wasn't violent.

 

[yello]

motor mouth "oh god i love myself" Mourinho.

Now oddly, and I'm definitely no fan of Mourinho, I thought his response ('the better team lost') was amazingly dignified. It would have been so from anyone but I was surprised to hear it from him.

So much so, and bearing in mind that I believe that Mourinho always has an agenda, I even thought he might be paving his way to something.... a return to the UK? To Man U even???

 

[Fab Foodie]

Football needs to wake-up and follow Rugby's lead:
Use of TV footage and remote refs for cases of arbitration. Would also reduce diving and play-acting.
Get rid of Yellow card and use sin-binning instead.

Let's face it, we and the pundits all have the benifit of multiple replays from different angles. The ref doesn't, he see's it once from his vantage point and calls it as he sees it. It's unfair on Ref's and it's unfair on teams and the game to week-in week-out have this kind of discussions on 'big' games and difficult calls.

But then football seems incapable of improving itself, it just wants the money.

 

[The Brewer]

Or how about involving the POLICE

 

[SquareDaff]

Think it was harsh and should just have been a Yellow (and I'm a Liverpool fan) but they all cheat and call it "gamesmanship" these days. The Refs job is hard enough - with all the play acting he's bound to get some decisions wrong. Stop the "gamesmanship" and give the poor guy a chance!

 

[green1]

Think it was harsh and should just have been a Yellow (and I'm a Liverpool fan) but they all cheat and call it "gamesmanship" these days. The Refs job is hard enough - with all the play acting he's bound to get some decisions wrong. Stop the "gamesmanship" and give the poor guy a chance!

Please explain to me how staying down after getting a boot in the chest is 'play acting' or 'gamesmanship'? The only gamesmanship was Nani staying down pretending he was injured, it's amazing how quickly his limp disappeared after the red came out.

 

[SquareDaff]

Please explain to me how staying down after getting a boot in the chest is 'play acting' or 'gamesmanship'? The only gamesmanship was Nani staying down pretending he was injured, it's amazing how quickly his limp disappeared after the red came out.

Did I say he was play acting? What I meant was that the "22 Gods on the field (yes - I was watching the ITV coverage)" try and pull the wool over the eyes of the officials so often they're bound to get some decisions wrong.

Everyone will have opinions of whether it was red or yellow - for me, and as non Man U fan, no intent = yellow.

 

[accountantpete]

Please explain to me how staying down after getting a boot in the chest is 'play acting' or 'gamesmanship'? The only gamesmanship was Nani staying down pretending he was injured, it's amazing how quickly his limp disappeared after the red came out.

If you look closely from one angle you can see that Nani spots him coming very late on and withdraws his leg at the moment of contact so lessening the contact. He probably got a bit of a knock - but not enough to knock him backwards.

 

[on the road]

If it had happened in the Premier League ( where Fergie seems to influence / intimidate refs ) it would have been a yellow card.
But in Europe definitely a RED

Worse than that, Nani wouldn't even have got a card at all, but Arbeloa would have been accused of diving and giving a yellow.

It was a definite red imo.

 

[User482]

Football needs to wake-up and follow Rugby's lead:
Use of TV footage and remote refs for cases of arbitration. Would also reduce diving and play-acting.
Get rid of Yellow card and use sin-binning instead.

If you're talking about how rugby is refereed (rather than played) I agree. One wrinkle is that the citing system might lead to refs bottling a decision on the field. There was a nasty stamping incident in the England v Ireland match which resulted in no action on the field - did neither the ref or touch judges see anything?

 

[yello]

There was a nasty stamping incident in the England v Ireland match which resulted in no action on the field - did neither the ref or touch judges see anything?

The short answer to that, imho, is no. That is why, again imo, citing is beneficial.

More broadly, I don't think refs in rugby bottle decisions any more than they do (or don't) in football. I think their decisions in both codes are variable and matters of judgement. And sometimes they simply get it wrong. Yes, those decisions can cost clubs big time but as hard as that is for clubs to stomach, I don't think the referees can be blamed.

None of that is to say that referees shouldn't be assessed and trained as necessary, nor that assistance (in the form of technology etc) should not be explored, but that ultimately it will come down to everyone accepting that any decision, no matter how it is derived, is fallible and simply accepting that.

 

[User482]

The short answer to that, imho, is no. That is why, again imo, citing is beneficial.

The reason I asked is because it was blatant, and didn't need the benefit of any replays to see what was going on. There may be a temptation to bottle a big decision if the referee knows that there is a post-match sanction available.

 

[yello]

I agree it was blatant... if you saw it! I honestly don't believe the ref or linesmen saw it.

I see your reasoning behind saying citing could lead to bottling but I don't think it happens in practice. No, after consideration, let me rephrase that. If it does happen then I think it the lesser evil, if I can put it like that. Refs do miss stuff, it's to be expected, so I feel that citing is overall beneficial.