Former Barcelona player Zlatan ibrahimovic is the latest person to claim that referees favour Barcelona, just as in the UK there are many that believe that referees currently favour Man Utd. In the past, the same accusations were made regarding Liverpool.
Ibrahimovic made the accusation after AC Milan’s exit from the Champions League on Tuesday night with two penalties being awarded in the match.
Such accusations rise to the surface in many countries but without a ‘whistleblower’ coming forward from any of the relevant organisations to confirm or deny such accusations it will remain a matter of contention and debate.
So, what about the match on Tuesday night? I watched the match and so, for what it’s worth, here is my two cents worth on the game. I will preface this by saying that although I ‘favour’ Real Madrid, I thoroughly enjoy watching the current Barcelona side, probably more so than watching Madrid.
Barcelona, as usual, dominated possession against AC Milan and, as a result, there are naturally going to be more opportunities for decisions to be made in their favour.
One of the most disappointing aspects, or innovations, in recent times is the dramatic play acting which goes on, players rolling around in their death throes, often clutching their faces, when there has often been no physical contact whatsoever, the idea being to get the opponent sent off.
Players specialising in this sort of behaviour include, in my opinion, Busquets and Alves of Barcelona, Marcelo of Real Madrid and Arjen Robben of Bayern Munich. Iniesta has his moments too. They are such good actors that it is easy to see why the referee is often fooled. They fall on the floor at the slightest touch, or even no touch at all.
With such players in the team and as long as referees continue to be fooled, there are bound to be a few more decisions made in favour of one particular team. The more these players are involved in the actual game, the more decisions will go their way.
The second penalty decision on Tuesday should not, in my opinion, have been made. On the contrary, Puyol should have been booked. However, Barcelona won 3-1 and not 2-1, so although perhaps a demoralising penalty decision for Milan, it did not decide the match. Players are paid (overly) sufficient amounts of money that one could reasonably expect them to put such (regular) setbacks behind them, even being spurred on to take revenge by winning the match.
The disputed penalty decision centred around shirt-pulling. These days, the players seem to be almost permanently holding on to the shirts of opponents, particularly during set pieces. At the time of the decision, there were numerous players grabbing shirts.
In the same way that there was a crackdown on tackles from behind, perhaps the same position needs to be adopted on the subject of shirt-pulling, players being told in no uncertain terms that such actions would result in an immediate yellow (or red) card and, if inside the area, a penalty.
It would still happen, of course, as is the case with tackles from behind or deliberate handball, but with less frequency and in the knowledge that it could lead to an early return to the dressing room.
Far too much shirt-pulling in Tuesday’s match.
Was there favouritism? Barcelona certainly did get more decisions in their favour but, as stated earlier, a combination of possession domination and a bit of play acting thrown in, it was to be expected. Also, players do try to intimidate referees these days, crowding round and ‘demanding’ cards be given to opponents at every opportunity. Sad.
I would have to say that Barcelona certainly got the ‘breaks’ in the match, the ‘benefit of the doubt’ on a number of occasions but whether this was due in the main to a combination of the style of team play, player attitudes and antics and a ‘gullible’ referee or blatant ‘bias’ I wouldn’t like to say. Probably the former, though, if I had to choose one or the other.
Referees, of course, with no on-field technology, do not have an easy job. Sitting in an armchair with an overall view and endless replays at one’s disposal, much easier job!