Bilic bile over ref’s shocker WRONG PLAYER RED CARD AND LATE PENALTY CHOKER
WEST BROM 2 CHARLTON 2
BLUNDER ref Matt Donohue had Baggies boss Slaven Bilic fuming.
Bilic called it a horror show even though his West Brom team kept their two-point lead at the top.
Donohue, who is in his first season in the Championship, sent off the wrong West Brom player and gave Charlton a shocking penalty equaliser four minutes into added time.
Nathan Ferguson should have been red carded for a flying tackle on Chris Solly in the 64th minute.
But instead, bungling Donohue ordered Grady Diangana off – despite Ferguson going to the ref and saying he was the guilty one.
Bilic was also furious about the penalty awarded by Donohue, who has shot up the refereeing ladder from non-league to this high point.
“I feel sorry for the referee,” said Bilic. “Yes I have been to see him. I think for the sending off, because he had players at him, the referee got the wrong man.
“But we said to him in a nice way that he had sent the wrong player off. He didn’t say sod off, he listened and then he got it right.
“Sometimes in life you have things that are predicted.
“The game was going our way. We were 2-1 up with 10 men. Then somebody says ‘No, we are going to make a horror movie not a fairy tale.’
“Of course I’ve seen displays as bad as that.
“It’s hard for referees, I’ve said ‘nothing personal’. The problem is they tell you you can’t talk about the referee.
“But it’s a major part of our job. If I can’t say in a polite way my opinion that is not correct.
“What can the referee learn? I feel sorry for him because he is young and he is human. Nobody likes to be getting blah blah from the wife when you come home late from a night out – let alone from 40,000 people. It is difficult when you are in the spotlight. Nobody deserves that but I have to talk about decisions which affect our jobs.”
Charlton boss Lee Bowyer says the Championship must have VAR to help out refs.
“The pen looked soft, didn’t it?,” admitted Bowyer.
“I was hoping the ref would stick with his sending off decision because the other guy (Diangana) was a threat.
“VAR should be in use because rewards to get to the Premier League are massive.”
Fourth official Nik Barnard went on to the pitch to help sort out the mayhem as Albion players and Bilic argued with Donohue about the red card and was booked.
Ten-men Baggies took the lead for the second time in a cracker – despite Donohue’s ham-fisted reffing, when sub Hal Robson-Kanu hit an 81st minute belter into the top corner.
But Donohue, who was taking charge of only his eighth Cham
WESTBROM CHARLTON 5 ........Shots on Target .........5 6 ........Shots off Target .........4 4 ................Corners .................4 12 .................Fouls....................9 0 ...............Offsides.................2 80.6 .Passing Success...83.5 413 ....... Total Passes........468 46.9 .......Possession .........53.1 54.7 ..Territorial Adv% ...45.3 pionship game, gave the penalty for Semi Ajayi’s push on Naby Sarr which looked no more than a fair challenge. Josh Cullen smashed in the penalty.
Charlton had enough problems with eight first teamers out not to be a goal down in 10 minutes. Jake Livermore set it up and Matt Phillips scored from Matheues Pereria’s pass.
Charlton missed so many chances to equalise it was almost a shock when they finally did it in the 60th minute with in-form Macauley Bonne scoring on his 25th birthday.
With what followed after that, it’s a birthday Bonne will remember for sure.