Tackling the issue!? Are we getting a raw deal from the referees?

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Prestwich_Blue said:
Anyone see that Bentaleb handball in the Spurs game? He punched it away, arm outstretched. No penalty.
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Yep watched a lot of Spurs games they have had so many decisions in there favour it's like watching the rags under Baconchops it's like there and agenda to get them in top four.
 
I have to admit I was pretty stunned that the penalty was given today, especially considering the context of the game at that point. 4-1 down, all kids, game completely over and he gives an incredibly soft penalty. Very odd. Is it tin foil hat of me to suggest the FA might have been interested in making an example of us for having the temerity to be displeased with their ridiculous scheduling, like the BBC clearly were.
 
If we were playing half decent the dodgy decisions wouldn't matter. Just an excuse like the injury situation. Truth is 90% of players and coach have been crap.
 
MadchesterCity said:
After much frustration at referee decisions (of which City appear to always be at the negative end of) and the result of having spare time on my hands due to a deserved ban for venting my frustration in a non positive manner, I decided to have a look at the question on everyone's minds; Are we getting a raw deal from the referees?

So I thought perhaps we should approach this question from a subjective standpoint and look at what is factually correct and not fall in line with the media and believe one of the following party lines:
  • These decisions even themselves out over a season
  • Each team is on the end of poor decisions - just accept it!
  • Manchester City have so much money that the referees shouldn't be able to influence the result.
  • The players aren't performing, it's their fault not the referees!
  • It's just paranoia, take off your blue tinted specs!
I have been so incredibly frustrated this season and have left the Etihad and other away grounds with my blood boiling, incredibly frustrated and feeling cheated. It would appear that after being on the receiving end of some unbelievable decisions it would be beneficial to look at the stats and facts surrounding referees decisions for and against Manchester City this season and understand some of the raw statistics.

Table 1: Premier League 2015/2016 Tackles, Fouls and Cards

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MCFC_Tackles_Rank.png

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What can we interpret from this table and how do we define if these statistics show referee anomalies or poor aptitude or attitude from Manchester City players??
  • MCFC have made only 343 successful tackles and lost 624 tackles, this is the worst in the Premier League
  • Only WBA and NOR have complete less successful tackles than MCFC
  • MCFC with 624 tackles lost is the highest in the league, we have lost 158 tackles more than Swansea and over 100 more tackles than Arsenal.
  • MCFC tackles ratio is 0.54 (20th) compared to 0.85 LIV (1st), 0.84 TOT (2nd) and 0.79 LEI (3rd)
  • This perhaps comes as no shock due to the work-rate we have seen from Liverpool, Spurs and Leicester this season - I hope we have identified this as an area to address in the Capital One Cup Final.
  • MCFC receive a card every 5.9 tackles (15th) compared to Chelsea 7.5 (1st), Arsenal 7.5 (2nd), ManU 7.1 (4th) and Leicester 6.9 (5th) - so what does this mean; MCFC receive a booking for every 6th tackle, Chelsea and Arsenal appear to be treated more leniently by referees and receive a booking after 7th/8th tackle. This may be coincidental so I'm not jumping to any conclusions here.
  • Looking at these figures as raw data it would appear that MCFC have a major issue and are not competitive enough in the tackling department, is this driven by tackling technique, player mentality or bias applied by the referees?
  • We have received the 15 more yellow cards than Arsenal this season
  • Our foul ration is average (we were ranked worst in Europe for this statistic last season) - see table 3; i'm not sure how we achieved neutralization of this factor but would appear we are receiving more balanced refereeing decisions on fouls overall - could this be due to MCFC being awarded more fouls due to the severity of the decisions the referees have made this season - paper over the cracks!?
Table 2: Premier League 2012/2013 – 2015/2014 Present – Ref Rank

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Chart shows simplistic (not opponent/match specific) breakdown of referee / pts obtained over past 4 seasons.
MCFC results are ranked against Referees and the referees at the top of the chart are the referees we have had least success whilst we are playing against/ when they are officiating.
From a count of 21 matches this season; Mark Clattenberg has officiated against Manchester City 4 times.
From those games City have accrued 4 points out of a possible 12 and have been on the receiving end of 5 major decisions which I will detail in Table 4.

These major decisions looked like this and were clearly not mistakes but choices!

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We lack of protection and rough treatment Aguero has received this season has been another huge cause for concern among most, the general consensus being that he gets less protection than most other strikers.
He is continually fouled from behind and is consistently on the receiving end of horror tackles like the ones from Dann and Wanyama this season.

Dann_Tackle_On_Aguero.jpg

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Table 3: Fouls For against ratio from 2014/2015 season

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As mentioned above this concern would now appear obsolete but is something skewing the statistics?

OK if there is something more sinister then we must investigate this; best place to start would be to review the major decisions for and against City this season. My analysis is detailed below and findings show a 9 point swing due to referee decisions which can be defined as major game changing decisions.

Table 4: Major Decision Review

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SeasonReviewPart21.png

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Interesting the same names continue to appear when you review these major decisions; Mark Clattenburg, Robert Madley, Craig Pawson and Anthony Taylor

Pawson.png

Clattenberg.png

Madley.png

Taylor.png
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This is very interesting.
 
Wanchope n me Dickov said:
If we were playing half decent the dodgy decisions wouldn't matter. Just an excuse like the injury situation. Truth is 90% of players and coach have been crap.
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Not having a go at you but I'm sick of reading this. Even Arsenal in their undefeated season didn't win every game three or four nil. They won by a goal and if referees saw fit to give decisions based on things other than the laws of the game they would not have gone all season without winning. All we ask are honest decisions which we are not getting.
 
manchester blue said:
Not having a go at you but I'm sick of reading this. Even Arsenal in their undefeated season didn't win every game three or four nil. They won by a goal and if referees saw fit to give decisions based on things other than the laws of the game they would not have gone all season without winning. All we ask are honest decisions which we are not getting.
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Many of the games I've watched at the Etihad this season, and on City's travels have been devoid of this feature from referees, and that is not the same as suggesting they are deliberately dishonest. The point I make is that the decision Crappenberg made re Sterling's 'handball' and the latest fiasco with Marriner is that they wouldn't just NOT give them up the other end, they wouldn't give them the week after, and they didn't give them the week before. Why is it that when we are involved in situations like the two mentioned it's a fuckin' penalty! That is the lack of honesty writ large!

There is honest refereeing and there is political refereeing. A booking inside two minutes? No, not for certain teams, but GazBaz has had one this season, I think. A penalty for a shoulder charge? Only Styles and Marriner apparently think so, and why do these two never give the multitude of penalties when the Dippers are defending a corner?
 
Wanchope n me Dickov said:
If we were playing half decent the dodgy decisions wouldn't matter. Just an excuse like the injury situation. Truth is 90% of players and coach have been crap.
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I'd wager they would, every decision matters regardless of how you're playing.

Just an excuse? No, like injuries aren't just an excuse either, they are factors that affect, just like our own ineptitude is a factor that affects.

As for your last line, it makes you seem a bit simple.
 
BigOscar said:
I have to admit I was pretty stunned that the penalty was given today, especially considering the context of the game at that point. 4-1 down, all kids, game completely over and he gives an incredibly soft penalty. Very odd. Is it tin foil hat of me to suggest the FA might have been interested in making an example of us for having the temerity to be displeased with their ridiculous scheduling, like the BBC clearly were.
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You'd be closer if you thought in terms of a Chinese betting syndicate.
 
Rolee said:
I'd wager they would, every decision matters regardless of how you're playing.

Just an excuse? No, like injuries aren't just an excuse either, they are factors that affect, just like our own ineptitude is a factor that affects.

As for your last line, it makes you seem a bit simple.
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But his last line is absolutely bang on; 90% of the players and the coach have been crap for how good they supposedly are.
 
KippaxCitizen said:
But his last line is absolutely bang on; 90% of the players and the coach have been crap for how good they supposedly are.
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How on earth do you determine the percentage? Claiming that that is the truth is subjective at best.
 
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