Footballing World | Ferguson has little to complain about

Chelsea

Ferguson has little to complain about

By Matthew Day ⋅ April 28, 2008 ⋅

Sir Alex Ferguson blamed another defeat on another penalty decision, but once again, sympathy is short for the Manchester United manager.

United have conceded just one penalty in 36 Premier League games - an incredible record which might be an indictment of the constant pressure Ferguson places on referees. Yet in matches in two other competitions - against Portsmouth and Roma - in which penalties were awarded against his side, Ferguson has been quick to blame the officials.

Ably assisted by Carlos Queiroz in the complaining department, Ferguson even recently admitted that he has been part of the problem in the lack of respect afforded to referees in the aftermath of Javier Mascherano’s dismissal for dissent against United. On Saturday, his players were similarly disrespectful, constantly surrounding the excellent Alan Wiley in attempting to influence his future decisions.

Highlights: Chelsea 2-1 Man Utd

Ferguson had some cause for distress in the two aforementioned matches; United might have had a penalty in the opening minutes against Portsmouth while Roma’s spot-kick was incorrectly given after Wes Brown tackled Mancini, first touching the ball before the man.

His rant at Wiley after Michael Ballack’s late winner, however, was unjustified.

Michael Carrick’s handball was expertly spotted by assistant referee Glenn Turner, and a penalty correctly awarded. Carrick made voluntary movement of the arm towards the ball and there was little option but for Wiley to point to the spot.

Assistant manager Queiroz also raged at a penalty not given for Ballack’s alleged foul on Cristiano Ronaldo. However, the German midfielder did not impede Ronaldo from gaining the ball. Although he briefly held the Portuguese, it was long before the ball arrived in the box and indeed Ronaldo was fortunate not to be booked for his subsequent aggressive hold around Ballack’s neck.

Ferguson is a winner, and that is why he is hurting so much after a potentially critical defeat. Not only does it bring Chelsea level on points, but also leaves United with no momentum going into their decisive Champions League semi-final second leg tie against Barcelona and final two league games.

He similarly erroneously blamed Howard Webb after Arsenal snatched a late equaliser in the 2-2 Premier League draw at the Emirates Stadium last November. On that occasion, he highlighted a supposed foul on Louis Saha in midfield a full two minutes before Arsenal scored their second. He failed to mention that the ball went out for a Manchester United goal-kick in the intervening period and did not point the finger towards any of his team.

Given, it is all part of shifting the pressure from his own players and onto others while maintaining the omnipresent pressure on match officials. Ferguson is a veteran in this game and is unlikely to stop playing because he knows that United, overall, benefit from participating. The tale of one penalty in 36 league games speaks volumes for the success of his strategy.