Neil Warnock tears into 'world's worst' Premier League officials after Chelsea drama
‘Chelsea know they got away with murder’
full transcript of Warnock’s post-game presser:
What are you feelings on the officials’ performance?
“I think if anybody was in doubt before today, I think VAR has got to be the answer. They need help and VAR would have sorted the goal out in 10 seconds. We’ve worked on things in the last three weeks and one of them is coming out at corner kicks. And the lads have just said ‘what do we do now gaffer?’ What’s the point? You’ve got to hope the linesman can see it! It’s soul-destroying really.
“I can understand all the lads being down because we played so well. I was really proud today of everybody. I thought the fans were great, the players responded fabulously. We didn’t want to sit in and not make a game of it. We wanted to enjoy it and I thought we did that. To be done by something that’s not in the game… it’s not something in our coaching that’s cost us the game, it’s soul destroying.
“Burnley fans, Brighton fans, Southampton fans, that must be the best thing that could happen today. It’s knocked our lads down, as you’d expect. They’re as flat as a witch’s whatever.”
Not just the goal decision, but others too?
“Yeah on another day. We looked at a penalty shout on Morrison in the first half which we felt was a clear penalty and I think the TV pundits said the same. The second half 53rd minute, Morrison again, Rudiger pulled his shirt back and the ref’s in a really good position.
“It’s almost now not matter who you play, it’s who’s in the middle and who’s got a flag. It’s alright making genuine mistakes but that shouldn't happen at this level. Not when you put so much into a game. On top of everything else that’s happened this season, it’s just a sickener. It’s hard to take really.”
Did you think Rudiger should have been sent off?
“I did yeah. I felt Ken Zohore was getting to the ball first, the ref said he wasn’t sure. If he wasn’t sure, he’s got to go that way. He wasn’t sure about the penalties, wasn’t sure about the second penalty. Couldn’t have any influence… I thought he had a good game if I’m honest, it was only the major ones. I think he’s a good referee, Pawson.
“Mike Riley, I don’t know what he does with these linesmen. If you can’t see something straight across from there… I honestly don’t know what to say to my lads. I said ‘at least we can look forward, as flat as we are, to going to Manchester City on Wednesday.’ Some sadistic person has put that one in! We’ll have to just regroup.”
You’ve not been fuming in a room after the game?
“No you don’t do that at my age. I did that once at Macclesfield when I was Burton Albion manager. I kicked something on the floor that I thought was plastic and it was a metal shoehorn, nearly broke my toe. So I’ve not done that since.”
What can you say to the officials after that?
“Well obviously I listen to what they say. They’re all honest guys, they’re as disappointed as me. But it doesn’t have the effect on them that it does on me. We could be two points behind the rest of teams having beaten Chelsea and it’s a different ball game.”
It wasn’t even close to onside?
“I know. He said that Willian blocked his view but I said it wasn’t a six inches one, surely you should be able to see either side that he was like two yards offside. Not close. What can you do?
“We don’t get major decisions I’m afraid, but we’ve got to get on with it. Once again we’ve had a kick in the teeth but we’ve got to regroup and go again now.”
Do the decisions even themselves out over the season?
“I wish I could show your a compilation! I’ll do that in the summer.”
You went over and stared down the officials?
“First of all I wanted to walk on the pitch to get Harry Arter out of the way - he’d been booked. Bruno and somebody else, they were all asking him why he couldn’t see the two-yards offside goal. I didn’t want anyone to have an excuse. I think everyone should come to Man City, I don’t want anyone getting out of it, we’ve all got to go! I said ‘Harry don’t think you’re getting out of it’.”
“I didn’t have to say anything. You don’t have to - and I have to give me wife the same amount of fines as I give the FA. I don’t feel like putting any coffers in. I wanted to clap the crowd behind them (the referees) but they didn’t want to leave the pitch.
“The game is passion. I’m 70 bloody years old. If you’re not passionate at my age when you see such an injustice when you’ve seen the lads battle and fight like they have… against a team we should have beaten.
“Do you expect meek and mild and ‘congratulations Sarri’, patting him on the back? And shake the referee and linesmen’s hands? Come on, it’s the Premier League, it’s the best league in the world. And we are disappointed.”
Could that be a £100million mistake?
“I don’t know the figures. I think Chelsea and Man City we didn’t expect any points. All I know is that it’ll the other teams we won’t be rolled over like some teams. You’ll get a good game out of us. We want to give our fans as much to cheer about while we can at this level.”
What was the exchange with Sarri at the end?
“He was moaning about a throw-in or something? And I told him - do you not know he was two yards offside, you should be patting him on the back, not complaining about a throw-in!
“He didn’t know he was offside, he said. And Zola came in after.”
Where does this leave the players emotionally?
“They were flat. You don’t expect anybody to be jumping around the place when you’ve been kicked in the teeth like that. But how many times this year have we been kicked in the teeth? Not just football but everything that’s happened to us. It’s the most difficult season I’ve ever had.
“And anyone who knows me will know I’ll be disappointed tonight. But I’ll live to fight another day and the fans know I’m doing the best I can with what I’ve got.
“Yeah I’ll be disappointed. We lost a game that quite frankly I didn’t think we should have lost. And I wouldn’t have taken a point, I would have been disappointed with a point and then we end up with nothing.”
THIS