Untold Ref Review: ManU – Chelsea 3-1 « Untold Arsenal: Arsenal News, supporting the club, the players and the manager
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By Ref reviewer 04
For this very important clash between Manchester United and Chelsea, Mr. Riley picked Phil Dowd. Dowd had a great start of the season so far in our reviews. Did he live up to it?
| Min | Event | Team | Player Number | Reason | C/NC | points | weight |
| 1 | Foul Given Against | MU | 23 | Foul against Chelsea player not given | NC | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Foul G.A. | Chelsea | 2 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 4 | Foul GA | Chelsea | 3 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 6 | Foul.. | Chelsea | 17 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 7 | Goal Given To | MU | 12 | Offside should have been disallowed | NC | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | Foul | MU | 12 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 12 | Foul | Chelsea | 8 | Regular | NC | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | Foul | MU | 3 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 18 | Foul | Chelsea | 3 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 19 | Foul | MU | 6 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 21 | Foul | MU | 10 | Regular | NC | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | Foul | MU | 17 | Kick on the heel of Mata not given | NC | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | Foul | Chelsea | 9 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | Foul | MU | 14 | Handball | C | 1 | 1 |
| 25 | Foul | MU | 6 | Dangerous | NC | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Offside Given Against | MU | 14 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 27 | Foul | MU | 3 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 28 | Foul | Chelsea | 17 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 29 | Foul | MU | 12 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 36 | Goal | MU | 17 | Nani came back from an offside position to collect the ball and started his run that lead to the goal. Should have been disallowed | NC | 0 | 0 |
| 38 | Foul | MU | 12 | Clear push against a Chelsea player who was bundled over | NC | 0 | 0 |
| 43 | Foul | Chelsea | 7 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 44 | Goal | MU | 10 | Correct | C | 1 | 3 |
| 46 | Foul | Chelsea | 7 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| Half time | 16 | 18 | |||||
| CORRECT | 66,67% | 60,00% | |||||
| YELLOW | 0 | 0 | |||||
| RED | 0 | 0 | |||||
| PENALTY | 0 | 0 | |||||
| GOAL | 1 | 3 | 33,33 | ||||
| OTHER | 0 | 0 | |||||
| 1 | 3 | 33,33 | |||||
| OFFSIDE | 1 | 3 | 33,33 | ||||
| 45 | Goal | Chelsea | 9 | Correct | C | 1 | 3 |
| 47 | Foul | MU | 10 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 48 | Foul | Chelsea | 7 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 48 | Yellow Card Given Against | Chelsea | 7 | Third foul in a few minutes | C | 1 | 2 |
| 54 | Penalty Given Against | Chelsea | 17 | Softest of touches brings Nani down. He tried to play on but as he couldn’t divert the ball in the net the ref gave the penalty. | C | 1 | 3 |
| 55 | Yellow | Chelsea | 26 | Dissent | C | 1 | 2 |
| 61 | Foul | MU | 12 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 64 | Foul | MU | 18 | Kick from behind on the ankle of the Chelsea player | NC | 0 | 0 |
| 64 | Foul | Chelsea | 2 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 72 | Penalty | Chelsea | 2 | Ball hit the arm but unintentional and the arm was close to his body | C | 1 | 3 |
| 72 | Offside | MU | 4 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 75 | Foul | Chelsea | 10 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 76 | PENALTY | Chelsea | 3 | To the letter of the law the ref was correct to not give a penalty. The ball was out of play at the moment that Cole kicked Chicarito. If the ball would have been in play it should have been a defenite penalty | C | 1 | 3 |
| 77 | Yellow | Chelsea | 3 | A difficult call. It was a dangerous tackle, stretched leg, studs showing at aimed at the shin of the Utd player. It was a goal scoring chance so I think a red card would have been justified | NC | 0 | 2 |
| 79 | Foul | MU | 25 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 79 | Foul | MU | 25 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 79 | Yellow | MU | 25 | Foul | C | 1 | 2 |
| 84 | Foul | MU | 24 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| 84 | Yellow | MU | 24 | Foul | C | 1 | 2 |
| 89 | Foul | MU | 17 | Correct | C | 1 | 1 |
| Second half | 18 | 32 | |||||
| CORRECT | 94,74% | 91,43% | |||||
| YELLOW | 3 | 4 | 75,00 | ||||
| RED | 0 | 1 | 0,00 | ||||
| PENALTY | 3 | 3 | 100,00 | ||||
| GOAL | 1 | 1 | 100,00 | ||||
| OTHER | 2 | 2 | 100,00 | ||||
| 9 | 11 | 81,82 | |||||
| OFFSIDE | 1 | 1 | 100,00 | ||||
| Total | 34 | 50 | |||||
| CORRECT | 79,07% | 76,92% | |||||
| YELLOW | 3 | 4 | 75,00 | ||||
| RED | 0 | 1 | 0,00 | ||||
| PENALTY | 3 | 3 | 100,00 | ||||
| GOAL | 2 | 4 | 50,00 | ||||
| OTHER | 2 | 2 | 100,00 | ||||
| 10 | 14 | 71,43 | |||||
| OFFSIDE | 2 | 4 | 50,00 | ||||
| Correct call | for Utd | 15 | 46,88% | ||||
| For Chelsea | 17 | 53,13% | |||||
| Total | 32 | ||||||
| Wrong Calls | Favour Utd | 9 | 81,82% | ||||
| Favour Chelsea | 2 | 18,18% | |||||
| Total | 11 |
What a difference a half make one could say. The first half almost every major decision was wrong. 2 goals from an offside. I can imagine a certain manager being upset after this game.
So the ref was very poor in the first half on the major incidents and on other incidents, but I will come back to this later on. Of course the offside decisions are down to the assistant but like I have said on numerous occasions: we judge them as a team. And for those refs and assistants who work with assistants and refs they will understand what I mean. We win together or we go down together.
In the second half he got most of the important decisions right and according to the letter of the law. Not to the spirit as I would have given a penalty and a red card for the late and dangerous tackle from Cole on Chicarito. But Dowd obviously, like I said before this season, has taken the laws of the game at hand and studied them. When the ball is out of play you cannot give a penalty. You can give red cards but not a penalty. But who could have blamed him for putting the ball on the spot. Because if the ref would say: “I thought the ball was still in play” he can give the deserved penalty.
But now for something completely different as the Monty Python crew would say. Take a look at the wrong calls. And you will read more about wrong calls later today or this week. But in the first half Utd had 8 wrong call in their favour. And Chelsea? Zero wrong calls in their favour. Nothing. Nothing at all. And then in the second half, with United seemingly out or reach the wrong calls suddenly are almost gone (only 3 wrong calls) and are more evened out.
So Dowd saved his day in the second half. But Chelsea really can feel robbed by the ref and one assistant.
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