You left out the best part. Crew Chief Carl Cheffers stated in a pool interview that the offside was so egregious that he couldn't see the ball and they normally wouldn't be proactive on a play like THAT one to alert the coaches. It's the closest you will see referees rip into both the star QB and a coach that normally doesn't comment on officiating and one of the most experienced, now feels that it's normal to rip into a correct call. I wish the PRO referees were as honest in the rare times we hear from them. I'm reading posts that predictably are saying it's partially cultural (I agree) for the same reasons that the Premier League will never solve it's officiating woes. Having said that, we have an MLS player who walks into a referee locker room after a game and still believes he did nothing wrong. Who's to say this same thing couldn't happen in the US? Lastly, I could care less what Collina says since he's part of the problem and not the solution. Stuff with pro and grassroots referees has been going on a long time and he's been mostly silent until now.
Yeah I wish soccer referees did pool interviews after the game to explain things Sir why did this player get a second yellow? Because he called me a f-ing dumbass “Maybe if he didn’t want a penalty conceded against him, he shouldn’t have even risked a small tug on an attacker who beat him and got into the box and he was 3 yards behind with no chance at the ball”
The match itself is actually on Dec. 29, so I suppose this news has to be verified. But it seems like very good news for Meler. And also a very bold decision by the Turkish FA. 🚨 ÖZEL HABER 🚨Halil Umut Meler, Riyad’da oynanacak olan Fenerbahçe - Galatasaray maçıyla sahalara dönecek ❗️25 Aralık’ta oynanacak olan derbi maçının hakemini de açıklıyorum ❗️Hemen canlı yayına katıl ve özel haberleri kaçırma: https://t.co/rGZEBxGsm4 pic.twitter.com/IusWaQJtfK— Ertem Şener (@ertemsener) December 16, 2023
The Intercontinental Derby. Currently first and second in the league table, tied on points. I'd say this counts as a Big Game.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/20/spor...nt-turkish-soccer-referee-spt-intl/index.html I heard about this because CNN is covering it