Referees/Officials

[meltonblue]

I've never believed there is inherent corruption as such with referees aside from a bit of unconscious bias that i believe is natural, and there are some reasons behind why the standard of refereeing appears to have dropped so much (changes in the offside rule, which also makes defending much harder, the speed of the game now etc.). We've definitely had a bad run of it lately though.

Due to the laws having to be open to interpretation, all that can really be expected of referees is that they are consistent in how they judge fouls during each 90 minutes, but I don't think they've even done that with this season, and even when they are, it also has a big impact on subsequent games too.

Had Oliver called for a penalty and sent off Matip or Milner (or Otamendi or Toure, for the interests of balance), then the impact wouldn't have been felt just in those 90 minutes, but in the games those players would have been suspended for too. Not only does it increase the chances of the team with 11 of winning that particular game, it would also have weakened an opponent in further games.

Im not sure how that is resolved, but it's where interpretation has a major flaw.

 

[cibaman]

I dont think there's much more the club can do about dodgy refereeing decisions. But perhaps they could diplomatically ask the referees' boss to clarify when the rule was introduced that penalties cannot be awarded for fouls on Sterling.

 

[Gorton_Tubster]

The club could highlight it to fuck. They could complain and lodge protests with the pigmol guys, with the prem with UEFA/FIFA/The PM. Raise the profile of this story and at least fkin drive the refs to either, stop being biased against us, or stop making cock ups that goo against City.

As it is it is alll under the carpet with the media saying it is just "poor referee standards.... Poor reffing that has cost City the most impportant games this year!

 

[Prestwich_Blue]

I think this is the muddying caused by the latest interpretation. When the ball went forward to Firmino, Lallana was in an offside position. The ball and a defender passed him putting him onside, but he still gained an advantage from having started in an offside position.

However, the new rules don't care about gaining an advantage, and forwards do it all the time to be a few yards ahead of the defenders. Aguero does it certainly.

This is the stupid thing about the new rule. Aguero could stand on the edge of the six-yard box for the whole game. Sterling or Sane could then beat the last defender on the half-way line and have a free run in the opposition half draw the keeper and pass to Aguero for a tap-in but as long as Aguero is behind the ball when it's played to him, then he's counted as being onside.

 

[Groke]

I am also bemused by the total lack of outrage or coverage of Monaco's first goal in the second leg where the Monaco player was clearly in an offside position blocking Caballero's view of the cross. How the linesman didn't flag for offside is beyond me, even more so when two additional Monaco players were also stood offside, albeit not interfering. The natural inclination of an unbiased official would be to flag surely?

The law states:

You are offside if you are:

• Interfering with an opponent by:
• preventing an opponent from playing or being able to play the ball by clearly obstructing the opponent’s line of vision

On that basis, a clear offside.

The lack of knowledge of the laws of the game is astounding, not one pundit raised the point that Lallana was 5 yards offside when the ball was played. For a professional linesman it is as clear an offside as you are ever likely to get and yet all I hear is that it was a gilt edged chance.

We are being cheated game after game.

Haven't seen it since, but it looked like the linesman did flag.

 

[the_invisible_man]

Presumably the ref didn't see sterling get taken out on Sunday and if he would have he would have given a red and a penalty (you'd hope!). Should we not be seeing some retrospective action and a suspension for milner? Never happening though is it.

 

[Rolee]

This is the stupid thing about the new rule. Aguero could stand on the edge of the six-yard box for the whole game. Sterling or Sane could then beat the last defender on the half-way line and have a free run in the opposition half draw the keeper and pass to Aguero for a tap-in but as long as Aguero is behind the ball when it's played to him, then he's counted as being onside.

Wenger used it as a tactic going back a few years. Van Persie would loiter 3/4 yards offside, the ball would be played over the top for Walcott to chase out wide, by the time he was in a crossing position he'd have an unmarked Van Persie to aim at because the latter had a 3/4 yard headstart on the centre backs.

It's annoying but then so is getting called offside when you receive the ball centrally and one of your team mates is in an offside position by the corner flag.

 

[Hampy1970]

I think this is where Mourinho and Ferguson are/were so clever. By consistently highlighting poor refereeing performance they automatically sew a seed of doubt in the officials mind, such that when a decision is borderline, more often than not it goes in their direction. I don't believe refs are intentionally biased but they are persuaded (sublimely)to award in a certain direction. Consider our own managers approached Pelle never had a bad word to say and Pep is only now starting to express his frustration. Perhaps we need to pay a fine or two for more directly negative comments on refereeing performance, to help the worm start turning. Either that or we are going to continue to see poor decisions costing us in big games.

 

[City Hobgoblin]

Someone with the technical nous and a lot of time on their hands should compile a compendium of the stonewall penalties we have been denied over the past 3-4 seasons.

 

[fierydan]

in the last few seasons,Oliver has refused us 3 or even 4 stonewall penalties in an Etihad derby,(the one Kun scored and we won 1-0)missed Moreno chopping down Kun in last year`s League Cup Final for an obvious penalty and now Sunday`s failure to spot a pull back on Kun and kicking of Sterling`s foot for obvious penalty.
Is it feasible that one official can make so many mistakes honestly?

 

[waspish]

in the last few seasons,Oliver has refused us 3 or even 4 stonewall penalties in an Etihad derby,(the one Kun scored and we won 1-0)missed Moreno chopping down Kun in last year`s League Cup Final for an obvious penalty and now Sunday`s failure to spot a pull back on Kun and kicking of Sterling`s foot for obvious penalty.
Is it feasible that one official can make so many mistakes honestly?

Well if I was referee and refereed the scum Id give em fcuk all just like Oliver the rag Tw_AT

 

[fierydan]

Waspish,I`m a very long standing Blue,my point is we were denied all these obvious penalties

Well if I was referee and refereed the scum Id give em fcuk all just like Oliver the rag Tw_AT

 

[crazyg]

in the last few seasons,Oliver has refused us 3 or even 4 stonewall penalties in an Etihad derby,(the one Kun scored and we won 1-0)missed Moreno chopping down Kun in last year`s League Cup Final for an obvious penalty and now Sunday`s failure to spot a pull back on Kun and kicking of Sterling`s foot for obvious penalty.
Is it feasible that one official can make so many mistakes honestly?

You're also forgetting Leicester away (and who wouldn't?) where he was ref. Possibly another 3 penalties he ignored/didn't give.

 

[inchy14]

in the last few seasons,Oliver has refused us 3 or even 4 stonewall penalties in an Etihad derby,(the one Kun scored and we won 1-0)missed Moreno chopping down Kun in last year`s League Cup Final for an obvious penalty and now Sunday`s failure to spot a pull back on Kun and kicking of Sterling`s foot for obvious penalty.
Is it feasible that one official can make so many mistakes honestly?

You're also forgetting Leicester away (and who wouldn't?) where he was ref. Possibly another 3 penalties he ignored/didn't give.

Wasn't he ref at Everton away this season as well?
Again Sterling was denied a pen

 

[nmc]

in the last few seasons,Oliver has refused us 3 or even 4 stonewall penalties in an Etihad derby,(the one Kun scored and we won 1-0)missed Moreno chopping down Kun in last year`s League Cup Final for an obvious penalty and now Sunday`s failure to spot a pull back on Kun and kicking of Sterling`s foot for obvious penalty.
Is it feasible that one official can make so many mistakes honestly?

I remember him giving Welbeck a penalty at OT when his studs got caught in the turf and no one appealed for a pen and there wasn't a Fulham player within 5 yards - shocking decision.

 

[prestonibbo_mcfc]

Hopefully next season, this won't be an issue. As Scudamore will have decided that it's our turn
to have our name on the trophy ;-) OK i'll get back to my mediation.

 

[Dave Ewing's Back 'eader]

in the last few seasons,Oliver has refused us 3 or even 4 stonewall penalties in an Etihad derby,(the one Kun scored and we won 1-0)missed Moreno chopping down Kun in last year`s League Cup Final for an obvious penalty and now Sunday`s failure to spot a pull back on Kun and kicking of Sterling`s foot for obvious penalty.
Is it feasible that one official can make so many mistakes honestly?

If it's Monsieur La Bouteilleuse (as Uefa call him!) then it's more than feasible. He's lauded and feted as the new Les Tirebuck, Jim Finney or Arthur Ellis and it's gone to his head.

 

[Blue Mooner]

This is the stupid thing about the new rule. Aguero could stand on the edge of the six-yard box for the whole game. Sterling or Sane could then beat the last defender on the half-way line and have a free run in the opposition half draw the keeper and pass to Aguero for a tap-in but as long as Aguero is behind the ball when it's played to him, then he's counted as being onside.

A player in an offside position at the moment the ball is played or touched by a team-mate is only penalised on becoming involved in active play by:

• interfering with play by playing or touching a ball passed or touched by a team-mate

Sorry but you are like so many in not understanding the offside rule. This rule was amended precisely because Fergie and in particular van horse face were standing miles offside waiting for the winger to pass him, play it backwards so therefore no longer being offside. The above rule expressly prevents that so how our wonderful pundits continue to make out Liverpool had a gilt edged opportunity is beyond astounding. These are the people we are paying to give expert opinion and they simply mislead the masses. You yourselves, intelligent football fans are now convinced it was onside.

Someone mentioned that the linesman did flag that may be the case but none of the pundits made the viewing public aware it wouldn't have counted therefore it wasn't a chance. Instead it's bigged up that Liverpool could have won it when clearly they couldn't.

 

[Prestwich_Blue]

A player in an offside position at the moment the ball is played or touched by a team-mate is only penalised on becoming involved in active play by:

• interfering with play by playing or touching a ball passed or touched by a team-mate

Sorry but you are like so many in not understanding the offside rule. This rule was amended precisely because Fergie and in particular van horse face were standing miles offside waiting for the winger to pass him, play it backwards so therefore no longer being offside. The above rule expressly prevents that so how our wonderful pundits continue to make out Liverpool had a gilt edged opportunity is beyond astounding. These are the people we are paying to give expert opinion and they simply mislead the masses. You yourselves, intelligent football fans are now convinced it was onside.

Someone mentioned that the linesman did flag that may be the case but none of the pundits made the viewing public aware it wouldn't have counted therefore it wasn't a chance. Instead it's bigged up that Liverpool could have won it when clearly they couldn't.

Sorry but I believe that's crap. The rule change was nothing to do with RVP. If Aguero is stood in an offside position when Sterling receives the ball, he's not classed as active at that point. If Sterling beats the defender and Aguero is behind the ball when he crosses it, I don't believe he would be flagged offside as play has supposedly entered a different phase. And the assistant definitely did not flag Lallana offside as it was right in line with where I sit and we were all open-mouthed.

 

[Dave Ewing's Back 'eader]

Sorry but I believe that's crap. The rule change was nothing to do with RVP. If Aguero is stood in an offside position when Sterling receives the ball, he's not classed as active at that point. If Sterling beats the defender and Aguero is behind the ball when he crosses it, I don't believe he would be flagged offside as play has supposedly entered a different phase. And the assistant definitely did not flag Lallana offside as it was right in line with where I sit and we were all open-mouthed.

The incident was right in line with we FOCs in CBL3 in 323. There was nothing like a sufficient time lapse for anyone to suggest that when the ball was passed to Lalaland it was a different phase of play. The canute should have been flagged, the useless non-flag waving flag-waver either couldn't get the flag back from up his arse or he thought England's new Bobby Moore was not offside. As an expert in the offside LAW I was incredulous. But it was typical of how that lino plied his trade - cluelessly.

I remember from last season, I think, we had one ref who dragged play back after an inordinate amount of time to give the Dippers a free kick having allowed them to gain an advantage that they squandered. We had a similar instance with Bottliver waving his arms like a fucking Dutch windmill, nothing came of it, and I shouted we wanted the free kick just like the Dippers last season. The variation between referees, and the same referee, often in the same fuckin' half, is killing the game.