Category Archives: Referee
A Must Win
Watching the new Super Eagles assembled by Coach Stephen Keshi against the Stallions of Burkina Faso brought back the images of the glorious era of Clemence Westerhoff. Back in those days, the Super Eagles had what you would call ‘muscle men’ in the likes of Daniel ‘the Bull’ Amokachi, Sunday Oliseh, Austin ‘Cerezo’ Eguavoen, Uche Okechukwu and of course, Mutiu Adepoju. These were guys that were as hard as they come.
These guys were physically imposing and not a few opponents ‘knew’ it after playing the Super Eagles. The only team tougher and more physically endowed than the Eagles during the mid nineties to the early millennium was the Indomitable Lions of Cameroun.
Wenger and Fergusson Supports Clattentburg!
Sometimes, Sir Alex Fergusson can be a terrible disappointment! At the time everyone is speaking against racism, the world doesn’t need a man of such influence throwing his hat into the wrong ring by expressing his support for a referee under probe and investigation for alleged racial utterances.
No matter what SAF may think of the final outcome of the match at Stamford Bridge last week Sunday, it is glaring that a vast majority of opinions tilted to the verdict of a tainted victory. If that does not matter to the Scot, it then shows that winning at all costs remains the hallmark of his career.
When Poor Officiating Mars a Match
What could have turned out to be one of the best football matches in the EPL in recent times was marred by incompetent refereeing by Mark Clattenburg. I couldn’t agree more with the view of Roberto Di Matteo that “It’s a shame the game has to be decided in that manner. We are massively disappointed that these key decisions were wrong. It always seems to be in favour of the opposition. It was a good game of football with two good teams and the officials ruined it”.
As I watched the referee issue two red cards in a space of five minutes to Chelsea when they were on the ascendancy and putting their opponents to the sword, I couldn’t help but remember the finals of the 2005 FIFA Under 20 World Cup in Holland when Nigeria lost to Argentina due to dubious penalty awards which Messi put away. The same referee refused to give Nigeria a clear penalty when Obasi Ogbuke was bundled over by Pablo Zaballeta.
