BOSS LEFT ‘BEWILDERED’ BY OFFICIALS
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NEIL Warnock was left “bewildered” by three crucial decisions in Middlesbrough’s controversial defeat at Swansea City.
By the time Warnock had come to speak to the written press postmatch, the Boro boss had calmed down slightly and appeared more bemused than angry, baffled at the second half officiating which cost his side dear at the Liberty Stadium.
Warnock told the TV cameras in one post-match interview that Boro had been “let down by a team of officials that weren’t good enough”.
In his written press conference, he talked at length about the three decisions that left him furious.
Warnock was at a loss as to how referee Gavin Ward saw a foul from Yannick Bolasie which led to him disallowing Marc Bola’s goal in the second half. And as if that wasn’t enough to infuriate Warnock, Ward then awarded Swansea a 97th minute penalty for a foul on Jake Bidwell despite initially pointing for a corner.
Warnock said the referee told him afterwards that he wasn’t influenced by the linesman in his change of heart. Instead, after taking a few seconds to consider his decision, decided it was a foul after all.
The other incident that irked Warnock was a foul off the ball in the early stages.
“Ten minutes gone and Manning takes Dijksteel out deliberately and not one official sees it, it’s a serious offence and there’s nothing in our locker to help, no booking,” said Warnock.
“Where do you start with the disallowed goal? He thought it was a free-kick to them. He hasn’t seen Bolasie has won the ball, its either a penalty or goal.
“He’s made the mistake and we bear the brunt.
“Then for the penalty, I’m bewildered because he pointed to the corner but he assures me when he thought about it he thought George didn’t get the ball and it was a penalty. So I asked why he pointed to a corner, are you guessing?”
Warnock was hugely impressed by Boro’s display, saying it was a “coming of age” performance, but the defeat leaves his side seven points shy of the top six.
Asked where it leaves Boro in the play-off race, he said: “Haven’t got a clue, I haven’t seen any results and I don’t want you to tell me. I’ve really enjoyed the game apart from decisions that have nothing to do with me.
“I’m sure I’ll get an apology from Alan Wiley, I don’t know what to do with them, I’ve got that many.
“We’re going to have to be a good team next year to overcome the decisions but we will be, we won’t need decisions to go our way.
“I really enjoyed it today, I thought we played some great stuff and they didn’t have a chance other than the goals. I thought we came of age.”
NEWCASTLE United’s relegation rivals will feel they can use the Magpies’ tumultuous week to their advantage in the battle for survival.
That is the verdict of former Manchester City and England defender Micah Richards who admits events at St James’ Park this week have made him feel ‘very uneasy’ about the Magpies’ survival prospects.
In what has been a turbulent week for Newcastle United, reports in the national media emerged on Wednesday evening that Bruce and winger Matt Ritchie were involved in a training ground bustup.
The report also suggested there was a ‘growing feeling of resentment’ towards the United boss from his players and while Bruce has confirmed his ‘bust-up’ with Ritchie did take place, he has labelled the rest of the report ‘absolute rubbish’.
Nonetheless, pressure is growing on Bruce with Newcastle just three points above the relegation zone after a run of just two wins in their last 17 matches in all competitions.
And while training ground bustups are commonplace at most clubs, according to Richards, he worries about the destabilising effect this week may have had in Newcastle’s bid for Premier League survival.
“Fights are nothing new. I thought about this all week following the news of Steve Bruce and Matt Ritchie at Newcastle,” Richards told Mail Online.
“It is an interesting story, one which has been widely discussed, but there is something about it that made me feel very uneasy about their prospects for the rest of the season.
“When news such as this starts coming out of a club, it is a worry. We had a rule at City that if ever a story appeared in a newspaper that hinted at troubles behind the scenes, we sat down on a Monday morning without fail and it was addressed. What happened inside stayed inside.
“I could never have passed on information like that to destabilise things. I’d have been embarrassed to cause a storm. And whoever is behind this story should be embarrassed because this could be the difference between Newcastle staying up and going down.
“I’m not being overly dramatic. There has been a cloud hanging over Newcastle all season. We know the issues they have faced but now it feels like a full-on storm has arrived. Every team facing them, starting with West Brom on Sunday, is aware this group has divisions.
“If I’d been a player at Fulham or Brighton, I’d have been rubbing my hands with glee when I saw Thursday morning’s Sportsmail back page.”
NEIL Warnock was left “bewildered” by three crucial decisions in Middlesbrough’s controversial defeat at Swansea City.
By the time Warnock had come to speak to the written press post-match, the Boro boss had calmed down slightly and appeared more bemused than angry, baffled at the second half officiating which cost his side dear at the Liberty Stadium.
Warnock was at a loss as to how referee Gavin Ward saw a foul from Yannick Bolasie which led to him disallowing Marc Bola’s goal in the second half. And as if that wasn’t enough to infuriate Warnock, Ward then awarded Swansea a 97th minute penalty for a foul on Jake Bidwell despite initially pointing for a corner.
“Ten minutes gone and Manning takes Dijksteel out deliberately and not one official sees it, it’s a serious offence and there’s nothing in our locker to help, no booking,” said Warnock.
“Where do you start with the disallowed goal? He thought it was a free-kick to them. He hasn’t seen Bolasie has won the ball, its either a penalty or goal.”