The quality (or lack thereof) of MLS referees is always a hot topic and frequently leads to amusing column or blog titles (like this one). But after watching the Chelsea/Arsenal game today I'm reminded that referees suck everywhere, not just in MLS.
After calling Chelsea forward Solomon Kalou wrongly offsides twice in the first half, the same linesman allows Robin Van Persie's first goal to stand after he was clearly a couple yards offsides on the goal. The referee, Mike Riley, bizarrely points to Chelsea defender Jose Bosingwa, who was yards ahead of Van Persie, as somehow playing Van Persie on. The match commentators speculated that perhaps a Chelsea defender had deflected the ball, as there would be no other possible reason to allow the goal to stand (if the ball came off a Chelsea player, Van Persie couldn't be offsides). However all the replays showed obviously that there was no deflection. The wrong call totally changed the momentum of the game, and Chelsea lost, 2-1 (Chelsea had been winning 1-0, Arsenal's goal came out of nowhere). So refs in England can be awful too.
They can also be awful in Germany, where they fixed games in exchange for being paid off by the Croatian mafia. They can also be awful in Italy, where Juventus appoints which refs referee their games. They can be awful in Spain, where they are apparently fooled by every player that falls down as if shot. They're every bad in sports other than soccer, like the NBA or any NFL game involving a Manning brother (just the personal opinion of this Patriots fan).
So lets cut MLS referees a bit of slack. Nobody's perfect, and in fact the refereeing situation could be a lot worse.
Showing posts with label chelsea. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chelsea. Show all posts
English Premier League kicks off
Chelsea won in style, and Manchester United couldn't beat Newcastle at home. Looks to be a fine season! Video beneath the cut.
Luck
Nobody likes it coming down to penalty kicks.
Chelsea lost in the Champions League final to Manchester United. They also lost the Premier League on the last day of the season last week, also to Man Utd. The EPL loss was their own fault - they didn't even win their last game of the season to put pressure on Man Utd. This loss was luck.
Chelsea lost in the Champions League final to Manchester United. They also lost the Premier League on the last day of the season last week, also to Man Utd. The EPL loss was their own fault - they didn't even win their last game of the season to put pressure on Man Utd. This loss was luck.
Chelsea into the Champions League Final
Chelsea beat Liverpool in overtime today to advance into the Champions League final. The aggregate score was 4-3. This game had it all - end to end attacking, controversial referee decisions (Essien's disallowed goal, Hypia's non-penalty), dubious coaching decisions (Liverpool subbed off goal-scorer Torres instead of general waste-of-space Dirk Kuyt), pre-game trash talk (Benitez claimed he had a 4 year video record of Drogba's dives), fantastic goals, and emotion. Frank Lampard played his first game since his mother died last week, scored a penalty kick, and kissed his black armband. Now they will play Manchester United in the final in Moscow on May 21st.
I watched the game at Summer's and am glad for it, it was one of the best games all season. Plus the Liverpool supporters were good comic relief, screaming for penalties after every cross or blocked shot. And yes, my thesis is due in two days, but some things in life are important.
Video highlights to come.
I watched the game at Summer's and am glad for it, it was one of the best games all season. Plus the Liverpool supporters were good comic relief, screaming for penalties after every cross or blocked shot. And yes, my thesis is due in two days, but some things in life are important.
Video highlights to come.
Chelsea beats Arsenal!
Unfortunately I didn't get to see the game. Chelsea went down 1-0 with twenty minutes left, but Drogba fought back. Highlights are here, 13 minute highlights embedded under the fold.
I had written the season off for Chelsea in terms of trying to win the league. With this win and Arsenal's bad streak (6 games without a win), Chelsea are now five points behind Man Utd., with seven games left. On April 26th, Man Utd. travels to Chelsea for the third-to-last game of the season - it could decide the title.
I had written the season off for Chelsea in terms of trying to win the league. With this win and Arsenal's bad streak (6 games without a win), Chelsea are now five points behind Man Utd., with seven games left. On April 26th, Man Utd. travels to Chelsea for the third-to-last game of the season - it could decide the title.
The end of an era
Jose Mourinho and Chelsea Football Club have "agreed to part company by mutual consent." The club owner, Roman Abromovich, wanted a European title, and Mourinho's Chelsea got to the semi-finals twice in three years, but never further. Mourinho wanted more control over the team, control Abromovich was unwilling to cede.
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In other soccer news, we see the classic English sense of fair play. Leicester and Nottingham Forest were playing in the League Cup when Leicester's Colin Clarke suffered heart failure. Forest agreed to abandon the game at half time, when Forest was leading 1-0. In the replay, Leicester allowed Forest to score from kickoff, in order to even everything up. Leicester ended up winning 3-2.
Reminds me of the 1935 friendly between England and Nazi Germany. England won 3-0, but the papers the following day were more proud that the game was playing in a sporting spirit, with headlines like "Three Goals and Not One Foul."
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In other soccer news, we see the classic English sense of fair play. Leicester and Nottingham Forest were playing in the League Cup when Leicester's Colin Clarke suffered heart failure. Forest agreed to abandon the game at half time, when Forest was leading 1-0. In the replay, Leicester allowed Forest to score from kickoff, in order to even everything up. Leicester ended up winning 3-2.
Reminds me of the 1935 friendly between England and Nazi Germany. England won 3-0, but the papers the following day were more proud that the game was playing in a sporting spirit, with headlines like "Three Goals and Not One Foul."
A good soccer day
Chelsea vs. Arsenal:
A bit of a grudge match, as they are city rivals and tend to knock each other out of competitions (like the Carling Cup this season, in which there was a big fight at the end). However this was simply a fantastic game. Chelsea needed to win to maintain any hope of winning the Premiership title, but in reality they had lost the title a couple weeks earlier, so I was able to just enjoy the game and root for a Chelsea win just because. The way it played out, I feel it was a moral victory to Chelsea in the end, as they were pressing to get the winning goal despite being a man down (Khalid Bouhlarouz made an absolutely boneheaded tackle to get red-carded and give Arsenal a penalty just before halftime).
Then, later today, the New England Revolution hosted the Chicago Fire. The Revolution were missing Shalrie Joseph, suspended as part of a bogus red card sustained Thursday during their game at DC United (a 1 - 1 tie).
The Revs won, 3-1. Chris Rolfe of the Fire scored a good goal from the edge of the area. The Revolution got the first goal of the season from my Man of the Match, Jeff Larentowicz (Brown class of 2004), the first goal of the season from Steve Ralston, and the first goal of the season from rookie Wells Thompson. Nice to see someone other than Taylor Twellman or Andy Dorman score for the Revs. I'll update with highlights when they come online.
Updated:
Here are the Revs highlights:
A bit of a grudge match, as they are city rivals and tend to knock each other out of competitions (like the Carling Cup this season, in which there was a big fight at the end). However this was simply a fantastic game. Chelsea needed to win to maintain any hope of winning the Premiership title, but in reality they had lost the title a couple weeks earlier, so I was able to just enjoy the game and root for a Chelsea win just because. The way it played out, I feel it was a moral victory to Chelsea in the end, as they were pressing to get the winning goal despite being a man down (Khalid Bouhlarouz made an absolutely boneheaded tackle to get red-carded and give Arsenal a penalty just before halftime).
Then, later today, the New England Revolution hosted the Chicago Fire. The Revolution were missing Shalrie Joseph, suspended as part of a bogus red card sustained Thursday during their game at DC United (a 1 - 1 tie).
The Revs won, 3-1. Chris Rolfe of the Fire scored a good goal from the edge of the area. The Revolution got the first goal of the season from my Man of the Match, Jeff Larentowicz (Brown class of 2004), the first goal of the season from Steve Ralston, and the first goal of the season from rookie Wells Thompson. Nice to see someone other than Taylor Twellman or Andy Dorman score for the Revs. I'll update with highlights when they come online.
Updated:
Here are the Revs highlights:
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