Referees' Performances | 2025/26

Blue Abroad said:
I am trying to think of a reason other than wanting to do their level best to prevent us winning the league again, given Liverpool’s imploding title defence and the fact that Arsenal can’t be trusted to finish the challenge on their own.

I am really not one to go for conspiracy, but that officiating yesterday was just so demonstratively bad, with nearly every dubious decision advantaging Newcastle and endangering our players (which seems both a short- and long-term fix by the league), that it is difficult for me to put it down to incompetence.

I was chatting with a close mate that is also a blue and he brought up that CL SF between Chelsea and Barcelona match when Barca players were allowed to do whatever they wanted, including handling the ball multiple times, with the referee just completely ignoring vigorous remonstrations from Lampard and co.

Our match was obviously not of the same significance, but it had that similar “this is the desired result, so make it happen, no matter what you have to do” dynamic to it.
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I also don’t go for the whole conspiracy angle but from 1/2 hour into that game my blood was boiling. The lack of pens was bad enough but the constant fouls being allowed to go gave NUFC carte Blanche to do whatever they wanted it seemed. It had a huge effect on the game and it felt very deliberate. I’ve said it many times before. There often feels like there is a leeway, or an allowance for oppo teams when it comes to bookings when playing City. How many times do we see us having constant free kicks given to us yet no action and then the first city foul produces a card. It definitely happens a fair bit.
 
Stiff Little Wingers said:
There isn’t any because there are no client journalists/media types with City’s best interests at heart. The dippers, Rags and Arse gave them by the bucketful.
Hence the incredible over reaction to the ref and VAR actually making the correct call re Robertson.
The old ref Keith Hackett has said Fodens was a clear pen but other than biased bullshit, not heard anything.
The club or Pep should be speaking out
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I agree we should speak out. I am baffled how that foul on Foden wasn’t deemed one. By the ref and by VAR. I’d love to know why they deemed it fair. From my view it was late and reckless.
 
bluemullet said:
I also don’t go for the whole conspiracy angle but from 1/2 hour into that game my blood was boiling. The lack of pens was bad enough but the constant fouls being allowed to go gave NUFC carte Blanche to do whatever they wanted it seemed. It had a huge effect on the game and it felt very deliberate. I’ve said it many times before. There often feels like there is a leeway, or an allowance for oppo teams when it comes to bookings when playing City. How many times do we see us having constant free kicks given to us yet no action and then the first city foul produces a card. It definitely happens a fair bit.
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There was a point last season, according to opta, where we had committed the least fouls in the league yet had the highest number of cards.
Another interesting stat which has nothing to do with weekends game. When mctominay was at the rags he once went 108 fouls between cards.
 
Monday morning and the media uproar from the VAR mistake in the Newcastle vs City hits new heights



Tumbleweed Desert GIF - Tumbleweed Desert Deserted ...
 
bluemullet said:
I also don’t go for the whole conspiracy angle but from 1/2 hour into that game my blood was boiling. The lack of pens was bad enough but the constant fouls being allowed to go gave NUFC carte Blanche to do whatever they wanted it seemed. It had a huge effect on the game and it felt very deliberate. I’ve said it many times before. There often feels like there is a leeway, or an allowance for oppo teams when it comes to bookings when playing City. How many times do we see us having constant free kicks given to us yet no action and then the first city foul produces a card. It definitely happens a fair bit.
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I’d agree that there probably isn’t a conspiracy as such but referees like all of us have their biases, conscious and subconscious. If the ratetheref forum represents rank and file referees then their view of Saturday’s referee is that he had a very good game but was arguably let down by var.
Now is it my bias towards City that makes me see things differently or is there an ingrained bias in referees in general brought about by the constant negative media coverage, or is that all in my head too? Last week’s furore whipped up by Liverpool probably affected Saturday’s match officials to be careful of not showing City any favours, in my view.
 
Media coverage about tackle on Foden. Which they claim is debatable because of a brand new rule about the ball having already gone. Nothing about the offside the handball or whatever happened to Donnarumma or even pep’s comments after the match. Think he and the club need to go further.
 
Blue Mist said:
In a broad sense you are right but not for the Foden foul. The defender had both feet of the ground and his studs went straight into Fodens ankle. That is not subjective. That is a foul on any pitch in any football league.
I can accept the referee missed it but that is why we have Var. They should have told him to view the monitor. If he had done and if he was honest, he would have given a penalty without much of a look at a replay.
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I agree with your opinion on it but it absolutely is still subjective, that’s how the laws work, it doesn’t just apply in some cases and not others.

It’s a side effect of tv and subsequently VAR that decisions are talked in absolutes nowadays, it ultimately always is down to someone’s opinion. Even the punditry after the game, Sky and MOtD had different opinions on the Foden one and the handball. Sky pundits thought the handball was a penalty, Fodens wasn’t. MOtD thought the other way round.

Like I said, I agree with you (and MOtD).
 
WRicko said:
Media coverage about tackle on Foden. Which they claim is debatable because of a brand new rule about the ball having already gone. Nothing about the offside the handball or whatever happened to Donnarumma or even pep’s comments after the match. Think he and the club need to go further.
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Strange these new rules come in when it’s affected us..
 
WRicko said:
Media coverage about tackle on Foden. Which they claim is debatable because of a brand new rule about the ball having already gone. Nothing about the offside the handball or whatever happened to Donnarumma or even pep’s comments after the match. Think he and the club need to go further.
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What new rule is that?
 
More you look at the Phil incident the more inexplicable it is. Need to hear the VAR room conversation, amazed they thought it was ok (even if you excused the ref missing the seriousness in real time).
 
has there ever been lines drawn on a semi automated image before? I have never seen it, I thought the whole point was it can work it out itself based off the players positions and if it can't then you have to draw the lines on the actual real footage image
 
meltonblue said:
No it isn’t, two footed lunges are. That was a textbook yellow card for me.
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Yep, although if his studs were higher then it would go up to a straight red (unless they've once again changed the rules). Not that it would have been given, even if he walked away holding Fodens foot up as a trophy.
 
flapjack said:
has there ever been lines drawn on a semi automated image before? I have never seen it, I thought the whole point was it can work it out itself based off the players positions and if it can't then you have to draw the lines on the actual real footage image
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Have you ever seen a semi automated image before that transforms the defender from being on the ground, to suddenly in the air? The whole thing fucking reeks.
 
Blue Mist said:
Thanks for the reply. If you believe there is institutional bias then those imposing the bias are bent.
Money does not have to change hands for something to be bent. If Barcelona are refereed differently to Real Madrid because of politics its bent.
What you say about the rags and the dippers happens, they get favourable decisions because of pressure placed on the ref. That means they are not refereeing the game honestly.
We all know that if a ref upset the gpc he was removed from their matches. Every single ref wanted rags v dips and so treated them differently than their opponents. That is corruption in plain sight.
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It’s a fine line between bias and corruption. Your point is well made. What I would say is that bias, driven by peer group pressure or cultural pressure from the boss, exists in every organisation in this country. Not many people like to rock the boat. We have certainly seen proven corruption in every UK industry in recent decades.
 
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