Tuesday 4 May 2021

Champions League 2020/21 - Björn Kuipers to oversee Manchester City - PSG Semifinal

Björn Kuipers is appointed for the second leg of 2020-21 Champions League semifinal between Manchester City and PSG.

04.05.2021, 21:00 CET
City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester (ENG)
Manchester City FC (ENG) - Paris Saint-Germain (FRA) 
Referee: Björn Kuipers (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Sander van Roekel (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Erwin Zeinstra (NED) 
Fourth Official: Anastasios Sidiropoulos (GRE)
Video Assistant Referee: Pol van Boekel (NED)
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Dennis Higler (NED)
UEFA Referee Observer: Alfredo Trentalange (ITA) 
UEFA Delegate: Ronald Zimmermann (GER) 

200 comments:

  1. Expected and deserved! Good luck! I wonder who will get the final.

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  2. As expected IMO. If I am not wrong Kuipers is first referee with 9 matches in one season of Champions League? Tomorrow I expect Orsato for Chelsea-Real and Vincic and Grinfeeld for Europa League.

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    1. Actually I think Vincic is a safe bet for Europa League, but probably Cakir or Turpin instead of Grinfeeld.

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    2. Yes, 8 matches were already a new record, now equalized by Makkelie.
      And I completely agree regarding the remaining matches this week.

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  3. Expected. Obviously, a very good choice !
    So, Who for the final ?

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    1. Manchester City - Chelsea : Mateu Lahoz
      Manchester City - Real Madrid : Turpin ?
      PSG - Real Madrid : Taylor ?
      PSG - Chelsea : Mateu Lahoz

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    2. That sounds very logical to me.

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  4. I secretly expected Kuipers to blow the whistle in the final. It would be a great end to his international career...
    I expect it in EURO.

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    1. I can not agree with you more, Anass.

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  5. Taylor is one very bad referee but he is one caprice of Rosetti.

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    1. I would like to see you referee a game.

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    2. IMO Taylor has been very good in CL recently. Let's be fair.

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    3. Taylor is the best English referee with Kavanagh and Pawson following.

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    4. Taylor very good in CL recently? Indeed, let’s be fair, and being fair I clearly disagree with you. In the KO stage Taylor spent more time in front of the VAR-monitor than in the field… I’m not stating he’s a bad referee, but ‘very good’ I clearly disagree with.

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    5. Taylor not even close to be the best English referee, dont write jokes.

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    6. Taylor is not a great referee. Oliver, yes.

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    7. Oliver is very lucky to still be an Elite referee.

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    8. Honestly I never liked Oliver. I think he reached his peak at second leg of the semi Real-Juve. Since then, he started to regress.

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    9. Oliver is the best english ref there is. Taylor is average at best. In fact if one is lucky to be elite still it's Taylor

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    10. Clearly Uefa has totally different view then you wwjd, considering Taylor’s appointments in Champion League compared to Oliver. So how things are in England, they are in England but saying that “if one is lucky to be elite it’s Taylor” makes no sense as it’s Uefa

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    11. @wwjd

      With JUV-RM, PSG-BAR, BAY-SEV and ROM-AJAX you can't say that Taylor is lucky to be an Elite referee. I don't remember many referees who had so many top clashes but weren't considered as "real Elite".

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  6. This could be very last CL game for Kuipers if not appointed again for the final for the second time.
    I think that tomorrow we can expect Orsato and then Vincic / Grinfeeld maybe in EL. Would be OK to appoint Grinfeeld in Rome, the game is not so much open after first leg and as first semifinal experience it would be suitable, considering that the last performances of Israeli have been not so good like previous ones, but in the overall context he is doing quite well. Vincic has a great trust by committee, so the game in London between Arsenal and Villarrel would be an expected choice, we will see.
    Before talking about CL final, it is mandatory to wait for Wednesday's game.

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    Replies
    1. Still not clear though, whether Kuipers and Brych (maybe also Orsato and Cakir?) will end their international career with EURO or refere some CL matches in autumn as they normally stay on the FIFA list until the end of the year.
      There could be some incentive to referee a final CL match in a full stadium.
      Probably also depends on whether they have a successful EURO or not.

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    2. I hope Kuipers will end his career in EURO. Ending a game in EURO SF or Final is far more meaningful than in a CL group stage game.

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  7. Interesting that Sidiropoulos is again fourth official with Kuipers. They seem to be matched quite often.

    Good appointment for Kuipers of course and a well deserved (final) appointment. Watched him in Heracles - VVV yesterday (a not too difficult match...) and I enjoyed how active he was. Very good use of the advantage rule at a possible penalty, cards when needed. Just a really motivated performance.

    For tomorrow, I expect Orsato or Hategan. For the semi-finals, I'd like to see Vincic in London and Stieler in Roma. I think Stieler deserves another match. Otherwise, Aytekin would in my opinion also deserve a match.

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    1. Sidiropoulos and Kuipers are very good friends, so probably Kuipers selected him for 4O.
      Once I saw photo of them together in Greece on vacation.

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    2. I agree, that Stieler deserved a match, but I think, it's extremely unlikely to see someone who is not selected for EURO.

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    3. It's true Kuipers and Sidiroploulos are good friends, who knows Rosetti already told Kuipers it's his last Champions League match and Kuipers was asked by Rosetti who he wants as 4th official indeed. In Kuipers his book there is also to read that Kuipers just in the morning of the Colombia-Uruguay game in 2014 had high fever, and feeled very weak and was not sure iff he could do thye match! then his roommate and good friend Cuneyt Cakir gave him a special threatment/medication Turkish style that helped very good, and thanks to this Kuipers feeled good enough to do the game! Kuipers called after the match with his father, and he has seen that son Kuipers was not fully 100% fit

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    4. Kuipers and Cakir are also known for their good friendship

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    5. Thanks for sharing, Eric, very nice to know these good friendship between referees.

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    6. It is known that Kuipers and Sidiropoulos are good friends (Kuipers was in Rhodes 2-3 years ago) but IMO Sidiropoulos doesn't deserve this appointment based on the performance principle.

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  8. OT: does anybody know if UEFA/FIFA finally want so develop a new scheme for referee-oberserver-reports? i think from the big and competitive leagues, almost every one has left the old-fashioned 8.4-system behind. it is not accustomed to var-times and neither to the new generation of younger referees. if anyone has any news, i would be very interested.

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    1. Yes, I totally agree!

      https://mikaelreferee.blogspot.com/p/evaluation-scale.html

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    2. I think, every new system would need a clear definition how to deal with VAR, i.e. specify how to assess a clear mistake
      - wrongly not corrected by VAR
      - rightly not corrected by VAR (because no relevance or not "clear and obvious" enough)
      - directly corrected by VAR
      - corrected after OFR
      - maintained after OFR
      - maintained without OFR, although VAR suggested it
      - only given after OFR (original decision was better)

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    3. I think all marks systems should be abolished and only writen reports should exist, just as it is in all FIFA tournaments. It would be to complicated to make fair marking system that would include every possible situation now when VAR is used.

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    4. thank you mikael for your link, which i have read with great pleasure. i also see the the points of the two other commentators. but also in the nowadays system there seems to be some contradiction: the match is decided by a dfk given after a wrong handball decision -> 8.3, the match is not decided after a wrong handball penalty decision due to correct var intervention no penalty -> 7.9
      how does that make sense at all :-) exactly! not at all!
      it shows again what i always say: a mistake must never be measured by its outcome. is a misjudged handball outside or inside the penalty box more or less crucial? who knows^^ inside you can fix it with var, outside you dont. the process is the same, outside or inside...
      so, mikael, we are on the same page with saying "crucial" mistakes must be taken out. however, what you call CME, i am not sure...for me this is still too much based on the outcome of the play. if the penalty is wrong, but the striker misses it, is it then a less crucial mistake?

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  9. OT: News about Skomina's immediate return were fake news. Just read an article in Slovenian media where Skomina himself confirmed that the time period of his return to refereeing remains uncertain as he is still recovering from injury.

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    1. so, it will be good if he returns at the start of new 2021-22 season

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    2. True, this season seems to be over for him.

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    3. Skomina turning 45 this year and is not pre-selected for WC22. If his recovery takes so long, is he still going to return to refereeing? Did he mention anything about that?

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    4. He didn't say anything about finishing his career, as for now this is not an option.

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  10. If Cakir does not get Chelsea Madrid game that means no game in the QF or SF. That would mean he has fallen very far in the eyes of Rosetti and I dont think he deserves that!

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    1. To be honest Cakir was just ok this season, but nothing more if you ask me. He is far away from old Cakir we all knew. Therefore I think EL semi-finals would be ok for him this season.

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    2. There are many refs in QF that Cakir did no less than. Hategan, Turpin, Del Cerro. Using the dutch refs 8/9 times and Cakir 4 shows me Rosetti has agenda against him.

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    3. I do expect him in Chelsea-Madrid, but I agree that this is not his best season

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    4. Çakır was not assigned in the Turkish league this week. In such cases it is usually awarded to European matches. I think he will be given to the other CL semi-final game and Europe League Final.

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  11. I know a lot of people will find this surprising but I think one of Hațegan or Kovacs will get a game this week.

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    1. I will be extremely shock if Hategan get a game. Hategan in Dortmund-Man city was terrible and IMO he should not get any game in SF. Kovacs is possible in EL SF but I would like to see Vincic and Cakir instead.

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    2. Indeed, besides the AR issues, his two big decisions in Man City - Borussia did not go well for Hategan. Kovacs would be possible in Rome, if the appointment was made after the first leg.

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  12. Will Cakir get the Chelsea Real game or is he out of favour? If so that is very unfair. Cakir is still one of the best referees in Europe, if not the best. I know Rosetti likes Orsato because he is Italian but this will be very unfair for Cakir.

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    1. What is the connection between Rosetti who likes Orsato and Cakir? There are so many games, I don't understand what you are trying to say. It is not due to an appointment of Orsato, that Cakir is ruled out, he could get many other games.

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    2. Chefren, I think he still deserves a Champions League game, he is champions league quality.

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  13. Rossetti put himself in problem when he put makkeille instead of cakir in first match between real Madrid vs Chelsea as makkeille candidated for the final if real in the final

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    1. Everything is planned in advance. Makkelie was considered this year for a semi-final, not final; that's all.

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  14. We speak about one of the best referees in history, Mr. Cüneyt Cakir!
    He refereed CL Final 2015, Club World Cup Final 2012, Fourth Offical in Final EURO 2012 and two consecutive semifinals in World Cup 2014-2018.

    He got 4 matches in UCL:
    Sevilla - Stade Rennais was good. Nothing remarkable.
    Borussia Mönchengladbach - Donetsk was good but low profil match.
    Lazio - Club Brugge was good in an important match for 1/16 qualification.
    Dortmund - Sevilla with an excellent performance in (for me) the hottest game in UCL behind closed doors! What an atmosphere even without fans!

    Cakir is a referee who needs trust and after the scandal around UEFA President Aleksandar Ceferin he did not get any high profil matches and no trust of UEFA referee committee. AND THAT IS A SHAME!
    I want to remind you that in the season 2018/2019 he was the best referee with UCL semifinal Liverpool-Barcelona. After that he had no trust anymore. AND when you have no trust from UEFA Referee Committee, no Roberto Rosetti and the UEFA President hates you, you can not deliver perfect matches.

    Sorry but he can handle every match in this world and he has no need to prove this.
    I hope that he gets a match in the upcoming UEFA matches and has a good UEFA EURO in this summer but Cüneyt Cakir's career is in UEFA at the "end" because he has no trust and backing. AND that's a pitty for such an remarkable referee like him.

    I don't want to challenge Kuipers against Cakir because both are the best referees in the past 15 years. They are both legends and they can manage every game on this planet.

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    1. can you explain what scandal by ceferin you mean? Either I didn't notice anything about this scandal or I just can't assign it?

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    2. I have the utmost respect for them, but no one can stay on forever; it is time for new generation.

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    3. @Niklas G The incident he's speaking about is EURO 2020 qualifier match between Slovenia and Austria in November 2019. Don't have a clip rn but IMO he missed a clear RC for SFP for Austrian defender.

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  15. Greek Referee Sidiropoulos as the 4th?! Surprising appointment for the Greek international honestly. Good for him.

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  16. Kuipers é o melhor Referee do mundo na atualidade.
    Valdir de Córdova Bicudo

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  17. IMO clear red card missed by Sanchez Martinez in Valencia Barcelona. Handball of Tony Lato, DOGSO. He denied a clear OGSO for Frenkie de Jong. PK + YC given, VAR De Burgos Bengoetxea no intervention.

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    1. https://twitter.com/zs_voetbal/status/1388950739083567110?s=21

      I hope the video works outside the Netherlands

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    2. Correct penalty, correct YC, correct no VAR intervention. Defender stops a promising attack. Attacker does not have control over the ball, so no OGSO.

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    3. Of course he didn’t have control over the ball when defender played the ball first! He would be all alobe with GK. Clear DOGSO for me. Also, clear penalty for Barca didn’t whistle a minute prior Valencia’s second goal. All top Referees whistled lot of similar penalties recently. At least it had to be OFR. Every single suspicious decision in this match went against Barca.

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    4. Always funny to read on this blog that having control over the ball is a must in DOGSO. I would advise to re-read the laws of the game carefully.

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  18. Very hot stuff for Clément Turpin with Monaco - Lyon ! OFR and penalty. One red card for OL during the match...and general riots between teams players at the end with 4 RC given ! Wow !

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  19. For EL final UEFA should look for a referee who wants to prevent RCs and not one who creates chaos and starts dishing out RCs when he is no longer able to regain control...

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    1. Completely ridiculous comment. No responsibility for Turpin in these incidents. Great acceptance during the match by players included RC and penalty after OFR. Just stupid players at all...

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    2. RC were given after final whistle...

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    3. You probably didn’t watch the game. Clément Turpin was very alert and preventive during the match and it’s not the responsability of the referee if players behave like 6-year-old children.
      One should praise his perception of the fight after the final whistle.
      I actually found him very focused tonight in a heated game. Well done !

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    4. Full agree ! A good game, well leaded !
      I hope to see him for EL Final

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    5. Clement should be very happy to have two such strong protectionists over here. Even when he’s not doing his best performance he’s doing so so great :)

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    6. Watch the game first and come back after with sensible comments.
      One red card during game...4 after final blow due to players behaviour.
      Not protection but facts !!!
      I just wonder at what level very few of us really officiated with such comments...or might be jealous or frustration.

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    7. Hello
      Tbh I am no football ref (I officiate in rugby), but very interested into football refereeing.

      The brawl at the end of the game was clearly the result of a high-tense end of game in which Turpin had no responsibility, there was stress due to goals, occasions, and maybe unexpected outcome after Caqueret (fully deserved 2YC)

      I think he has been brave, just doing his job.
      Maybe one can reproach him some decisions during the game (I would think not apart a "lucky" YC on Kadewere (SFP?)) but I won't, am no expert.
      But the brawl - never his responsibility

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    8. The problem is: it happens more often that Turpin has games with lots of RCs. For instance Ajax - Bayern, for which he was praised a lot: his performance before the RCs was very chaotic and a better approach could have prevented these RCS (and they were very bad challenges, a referee must do everything to try to prevent those from happening). It’s a pattern I see with Turpin and since it’s a pattern we shouldn’t be so quick to say it’s not his fault / responsibility.

      Also, Kadewere should definitely have been sent off.

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    9. Video from match Monaco-Lyon, penalty by Turpin: https://t.me/REF_EX/310

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  20. In case of city v Madrid turpin could be outside bet for UCl final

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  21. OT EURO GROUP PHASE PREDICTIONS.

    TUR ITA Makkelie
    WAL SUI Grinfeld
    DEN FIN Hategan
    BEL RUS Brych
    AUT FYR Ekberg
    NED UKR Orsato
    ENG CRO Mateu Lahoz
    SCO CZE Soares
    POL SVK Oliver
    SWE ESP Cakir
    GER FRA Taylor
    HUN POR Rapallini

    SUI ITA Kuipers
    TUR WAL Kovacs
    DEN BEL Turpin
    RUS FIN Siebert
    NED AUT Del Cerro Grande
    FYR UKR Grinfeld
    SCO ENG Brych
    CRO CZE Cakir
    ESP POL Hategan
    SVK SWE Karasev
    POR GER Orsato
    FRA HUN Ekberg

    SUI TUR Mateu Lahoz
    WAL ITA Soares
    FIN BEL Oliver
    RUS DEN Taylor
    FYR NED Rapallini
    UKR AUT Kovacs
    ENG CZE Turpin
    CRO SCO Karasev
    SVK ESP Siebert
    POL SWE Makkelie
    FRA POR Kuipers
    HUN GER Del Cerro Grande

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    1. Vincic is missing in your list.

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    2. And the Bogmar-Tamâs. Why not Hungarian in the list?

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    3. My guess is that 16 elite and Rapallini will each get 2 group stage matches (34) and Siebert and Ekberg will each get 1 match in third round of group stage. In total 36 matches.

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    4. But does Karasev really deserve two group stage games?

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    5. @Referee 12: I nearly agree, but I think, it should be open on which matchday Siebert and Ekberg are appointed. Maybe it makes even more sense to use them early on to keep the flexibility to give them another appointment if others become unavailable. Furthermore it's rather unlikely, that there are unimportant matches on MD3 with the current system.

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    6. @Philipp S: You are actually right about that it should be open on which matchday Siebert and Ekberg are appointed. I did not think that in current system there probably won't be unimportant matches on MD3.

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  22. OT

    2021 UEFA WOMEN'S CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL
    16/05/2021, 21:00 CET
    Chelsea FC - FC Barcelona
    Referee: Riem Hussein (GER)
    Assistant Referee 1: Katrin Rafalski (GER)
    Assistant Referee 2: Sara Telek (AUT)
    Fourth Official: Katalin Kulcsár (HUN)
    Video Assistant Referee: Bastian Dankert (GER)
    Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Christian Dingert (GER)
    Reserve Assistant Referee: Julia Magnusson (SWE)

    Confirmed by UEFA! Congratulations to the officiating team for this prestigious appointment!

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    1. Why no Frappart?
      I can't believe this!

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    2. Non sense appointment of Riem Hussein.

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  23. Shall we see Kuipers last CL-match tonight?

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  24. Chile - Austria (Gamal Al-Ghandour) and Italy - Cameroon (Edward Lennie) are today's games from FIFA World Cup 1998.

    wc98refs.blogspot.com

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  25. Snow on the pitch and already two bigger fouls in 1', I think we can expect a tough game for Kuipers.

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    1. Unfortunately a weak start for Kuipers, clearly wrong perception. Penalty was wrong. Quick OFR (about a second), underlining that the decision was definitely wrong.

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  26. Not a handball, wrong decision by Kuipers. Looked like he whistled after the protests by players. I didn't see him very convinced...

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    1. Even if he had touched with the arm, that would have never been a penalty. I can’t understand the decision

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  27. RIDICULOUS penalty. Luckily we have VAR

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  28. Wrong decision by Kuipers. Correct intervention by Van Boekel.

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  29. This is an OFR as it should be. Bravo mr. Van Boekel and Kuipers

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    1. It seems to me that you really have said this as a compliment... How is it possible for VAR not to intervene??? One of the worst mistakes of the season and the regular idiotic performance by any of the Dutch referees when they have some more pasionate teams on the field..

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    2. “…and the regular idiotic performance by any of the Dutch referees when they have some more passionate teams on the field”.
      The only idiotic here is your comment.

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  30. Very fast check by Van Boekel and fast OFR by Kuipers. In the end correct decision.

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  31. Correct VAR intervention, Kuipers whistled PK but the ball hit above the shoulder, so no handball.

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  32. Kuipers hasn’t been his usual self this season. Still good and reliable but not “great” like he was at his peak.

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  33. Very good on-side decision now by Erwin Zeinstra in '10, correctly allowed goal. Still kind of amazed though how he and Kuipers could think there was a handball in the penalty situation.

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    1. Agreed, good onside decision prior 1–0. I hope Kuipers finds back into the game. However, it is not totally wrong to say that Kuipers is not in his best form, he did not show his top level in the last games.

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    2. Indeed. I think his last few Eredivisie games were of a better level, but overall, Kuipers isn't at his best this season. It sometimes feels as if he is refereeing games a bit uninteresed, based on his overall experience, rather than detailed game preparation. That feels odd to me, because it's exactly the latter that really helped Kuipers in achieving the career he has had.

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  34. How does committee evaluate such decisions? That could’ve been one of the worst penalties ever without VAR

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  35. I think the penalty was whistled based on (bad) intuition. luckily, there is VAR. such a call would have been a scandal.

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    1. Agree with you there, I also think Kuipers whistled based on intution, I don't think he saw well that situation.

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  36. Kuipers obviously have problems with handballs tonight...

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  37. I would have thought that after the horrendous PK decision that Kuipers would know that the shoulder was not handball

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  38. Now another wrong handball whistled by Kuipers, The Dutch is struggling to correctly spot what is, or not, a handball tonight.

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  39. I feel that Kuipers this evening is not in his best day... difficult control of the game so far.

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    1. Yes, if PSG stays behind, there will be a lot of frustration fouls, which will be a real test for Kuipers to maintain control.

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    2. I do not want to exaggerate but I cannot remember to have seen Kuipers so struggeling like today. Indeed, this is a sign of the high level of refereeing he usually shows. Today, I am very surprised.

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  40. Onee of the worsest night of kuipers. He is overplayed by Rossetti this season. disspointing performance so far. The game slipping form his hands.

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  41. Unnecessary YC PSG. Could have easily been prevented and managed. Kuipers not in shape tonight. Players are protesting a lot and are feeling that Kuipers is not focussed.

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  42. I am very glad and actually surprised to read some objective comments here when it is absolutely clear that the referee is not doing well. Unfortunately I have read some comments like this one - 'This is an OFR as it should be. Bravo mr. Van Boekel and Kuipers', which actually turns the discusion into a parody.

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    1. Some comments? It was the only one till your comment. Agree we need objective comments to judge the referees performance, your comment does not contribute to that.

      Ontopic: Not the best night for Kuipers. Absolutely shocker of a penalty. Did he guess? Or did van Roekel/Sidiropoulos told Kuipers something? Luckely we have the VAR...

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  43. People here are seeing what they want to see... Kuipers indeed isnt as good and focussed as usual till now, but by far not "out of control/slipping out of his hands " Is it excellent? Surely not, but at least the OFR was fast. For me its a bit like Orsatos PSG Bayern. Good? No, but also not bad

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    1. This penalty decision not bad??? OK... Good luck with that

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    2. That was a mistake indeed, however it was corrected in the way and as fast as it should.... Im talking about the bagger picture I see. If you only want to bash Kuipers...go on you can do that right now on his "worst night in 6 years" which is still not a nightmare at all ;)

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    3. The decision was bad but I don‘t see any lack of control as well. So far I see a quite easy game with not much to do for Kuipers and with a lot of mistakes by the players. But I agree that he doesn‘t look as sharp and „untouchable“ as he was in other matches. But so far, no one has to talk about the refereeing performance.

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    4. Juventus - Porto and England - Poland were also poor.

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    5. I did not watch England-Poland, but I strongly disagree that Kuipers was poor in Juventus-Porto. For sure, this was one of the most challenging games for referees to handle. Let's put in this way: who can certainly handle better than Kuipers? IMO Kuipers was above average in Juventus-Porto

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  44. Bernardo Silva lucky to escape from a card! Kuipers too lenient.

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  45. What is the opinion here about the use of the arm inside the penalty area in the face of the PSG player? For which he was treated. Commentator said a penalty could have been whistled, especially comparing with the free kick and YC he gave against PSG.

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  46. Well, fortunate for Kuipers the match calmed down after the first 15 minutes.. Big mistake with the penalty and some struggles with his match control, agree with Chefren. Since then, no problems. Correct YC (smart decision because of the players reaction) and a better game management.

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  47. I must say it is funny when people who officiate at regional level or never officiated any match write comments like "nightmare for Kuipers", "Kuipers without control",...
    Let's be real. Therr were some problems with control but nothing important. All crucial decisions correct (one corrected by VAR), one wrong handball in the middle of the field and one deserved YC.
    I am more and more shocked with comments here. I'm affraid what will comments look like tomorrow if for example Orsato misses one throw in or corner kick....

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    1. Generally I agree with you, but we must also me honest: there were no crucial decisions by Kuipers that were correct. There only was a very wrong penalty call but nothing more. So it is just a football match in which nobody has to talk about referee‘s performance that much.

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  48. IMO Kuipers is not good enough in this 1H. He doesn't look focused, or interested at times. Wrong assessment of handballs including the PK where VAR called him back, and one YC who could've been avoided with soft skills/management.

    Let's hope he will do better in 2H, because he is clearly underperforming, he has been way better in his previous games.

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  49. 5 fouls by Fernandinho kuipers never heard of accumulation

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  50. Am I the only one who saw a possible penalty for PSG after a hit in the face. Intention was quite high.

    In other countries like Italy this type of hitting the opponents face could have been easily a penalty and YC.

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    Replies
    1. Yes, agree! Missed that in my comment but according to the LotG, clear penalty + YC.

      Of course, 'nobody' wants a penalty (especially intervention) for that in a CL SF.

      Delete
  51. My views on the 1H (wasn't taking notes):

    - missed borderline stamp inside ten seconds, then he correctly assessed foul on Di María as careless at sth like 4'

    - penalty was a scandalous decision, sorry but that's very hard to accept in a CL SF, of course without VAR it would never have been given in the first place, correctly renounced after OFR; mobbing?

    - handling call against Foden was clearly Sidirópoulos' shout

    - perfectly correct freekick against Herrera, then he is mobbed by players from both teams, no card, then excellent YC for aggressive behaviour to Herrera, you can see that calmed everyone down

    - missed yellow card to Silva for a deliberate kick on Neymar, Kuipers should have given that instantly, in general the Dutch ref seemed a bit overmatched in this scene, not really in control of the players actions, again dissent and mobbing

    -> besides the penalty call, I don't think Kuipers has really been terribly bad or anything like that, but he is not on the same level as his characteristic excellent style, confidently taking a step back and keeping everything 'in view'.

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    1. Michael, more or less I agree with your assessments + a penalty accident in favour of PSG for a hit in the face but I strongly disagree with your conclusion. You mentioned 6 incidents 4 of which are pretyy obvious mistakes. So when a referee takes correctly just 2 out of 6 decisions the mark can only be bad, especially at this stage...

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  52. I wonder why we have such a huge number of comments in a game with one bad perception misstake, a fully correct YC and a number of fouls/complaints which would have occured to any other ref in a CL SF. So no big deal so far...

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    Replies
    1. The wrong penalty call surprised some people here simply because Kuipers has been so excellent for a very very long time. All of us have a very high expectation on Kuipers because of his level. When an excellent referee made a mistake like this, this would definitely called people attention. Let's be honest, this is a clear mistake, and Kuipers should appreciate with VAR help. IMO Kuipers is the best (not one of the best) in UEFA, and I wish him all the best if he decides to retire after EURO in the summer.

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  53. How many Kuipers lovers... and Dutch fans on this blog!

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    1. How many Kuipers haters… and jealous fans of other refs on this blog!

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  54. How many fouls will Fernandinho do before he gets a caution?

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  55. German TV: Kuipers with a “very good game“

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "...besides the two handball situations in the first half"
      (if you are referring to DAZN)

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  56. Correct RC by Kuipers. Violent conduct by Di Maria.

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    Replies
    1. Agree. Correct RC by Kuipers.

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    2. Agreed. Good cooperation with Sidiropoulos, RC quickly given. Mandatory RC.

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    3. My impression was, that Kuipers saw that himself. It seemed that Sidiropoulos was not looking directly at the situation and Kuipers was quite quick with the RC anyway.

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  57. Oh there will be more red cards by the end of this match...

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  58. The outcome should be clear but we will see a very dirty end. I'm not sure this is the last sent-off we have seen today...

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  59. Kuipers has lost the control and its his own fault. I expected better performance from a referee who gets all the important matches lately.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Paris lost the control more than Kuipers did

      Delete
    2. What exactly is there Kuiper's fault? It is his fault Di Maria hit Fernandinho?

      Delete
    3. No it‘s not. I‘ve never seen such a dirty team like PSG. Why should it be Kuipers‘ fault when the French always lose their head?

      I agree with you that Kuipers is not perfect tonight. But I think no referee in the world can stop this unsporting behaviour

      Delete
    4. Oh come on. PSG is a very tough team to handle when they lose. And same comments were said when Brych handles the last 20 mins of first leg. Tough period of the game but Kuipers is showing strong authority. Any other referee would have similar challenges...

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    5. Agree with Jonas there. It's only PSG's fault...

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    6. With French I mean the PSG players only of course and not French in general :)

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    7. All three YCs for Manchester correct. Zinchenko is strong candidate to get second YC by the end.

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    8. Completely agree with you guys, Jonas and referee 12
      Many fouls committed by Paris players were awful and ugly

      Delete
  60. On the following situation after the RC:
    YC to Verratti quite soft (but maybe a sensible attempt to calm him down)
    Then Paredes throws the ball on his opponent. Kuipers shouts strongly at him, but nothing more. Should have been at least a YC IMO.
    Zinchenko is very upset by Paredes' action and is correctly booked for agressive behaviour/dissent.
    In the next situation Verratti commits a foul, that could easily have been a 2nd YC (SPA) - but not completely mandatory, I think.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Fully agree with you, Phillip

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    2. Also no YC for Fernandinho who starts the incident, These are the moments that he lost his chance for Euro 20 Final.

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    3. John IT IS very obvious that you are everything but a Fan of kuipers. You also Staates that it was His fault that du Maria lost Control. But please try at least to give constructive criticism and mit this hate

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  61. Clear RC now missed by Kuipers, YC is not enough for me. Excessive force by Kimpembe.

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  62. Next possible red card against Pereira? Here yellow okay for me.

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    Replies
    1. Less RC than previous incident, but still very nervous end of the game. Luckily final whistle is very close.

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    2. This is 1000 procent red card.

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  63. Danilo’s foul is more RC than Kimpembe. Studs on the upper leg.
    What a bad behavior of the PSG players.

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  64. In terms of refereeing: there are several points for improvement and some situations will probably be used as teaching material as how some situations should be and how some situations should not be handled. Definitely not the best Kuipers we used to watch.
    In terms of football: no one will talk about refereeing, City won fair and square and they deserved their place in the final, neither Kuipers neither Brych had any impact on thaz.

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  65. So, how can we evaluate Kuipers‘ performance today? Definetly not perfect (clearly wrong penalty, some issues with handball in general and maybe not always perfect card management) but in a very nervous end he somewhat kept calm although I think one more red card was mandatory. Perhaps you could say that it was kind of „clever“ decision to give yellow cards.
    In summary the performance was okay but not more in a (partially) very difficult game in which many if not all referees would have struggled.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jonas, someone who understands refereeing.

      Refereeing isn’t always about getting every decision to the letter of the law. Giving a card at the right moment can calm everything. Giving one at the wrong moment can aggravate the whole match. The fact that he managed to keep things under control in a match of this intensity won’t be appreciated enough.

      He was the perfect man for a game like this, his experience and class was needed. Yes he got a few handball decisions wrong but that didn’t make a big impact on the game did it?

      Delete
  66. Not a good performance from Kuipers. Wrong hand penalty kick by VA corrected. Clear red card not given in the 89th minute. Verratti, too, should have seen yellow-red. Not consistent at the end of personal punishments. He didn't have the courage to make a clear assessment for duels at the end of the game. time is slowly over for Kupers.

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  67. Well Kuipers compromised the safety of the players by ignoring two clear RCs at the end, thankfully nobody got seriously injured.

    Agree with Philipp's analysis of the relevant minutes, would only add that the YC to Zinchenko was: 1) totally wrong according to his line prior to that, 2) an excellent tactical choice which calmed the players down.

    It's not Kuipers fault that Paris lost their composure, but I general I don't think the Dutchman was really ever in control of the players actions in this game.

    The talk tomorrow won't be of the officials, but that doesn't mean it was a good performance either. Every athlete can, (and will!) go through a period of sub-optimal form, but Kuipers is without doubt an absolutely top class referee - let's see what shape he's in for the EURO!

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    Replies
    1. And to underline - the instant VC call was really good, well done.

      Delete
    2. Perfect evaluation Mikael.
      Not the best night, in terms of LOTG we can even say it's really not appropriate refereeing.
      2 clear red cards could be given in the end and even Verratti could be sent off earlier. But can we all imagine the scandal of seeing a semifinal with 3-4 red cards for one team, where the tie is basically decided?
      I think most of the Elite referees would fail this test in terms of applying LOTG. But it could be worse for a less experienced or for someone with less charisma or reputation.

      So no doubt, that was not a great performance, but this game was more complex then saying simply good or bad.

      In the end no impact on the end result and no injuries luckily.

      Delete
    3. I agree with Mikael. The missed red cards at the end of the game are very evident mistakes and a referee can't ignore players safety. He had to issue cards, no matter the reaction of PSG players. French players started to be even more frustrated when they realized that it was impossible to qualify. This was even more sharpened by the fact that they were close to score many times when game was still open to any result. A poor behavior, but... Kuipers could have done by far better in my opinion. He started with that wrong PK decision that spoiled a bit his acceptance towards players, and I think that he also felt uncomfortable after the incident. What he could have done to prevent more irritation by players was the following: booking more frequently during the middle period of the game, when things looked to be a quite calm if compared to both the beginning and the end. It was a very difficult game and all referees would have been in trouble, but still the most important thing is that nobody will talk about referee and the only potential influencing decision was corrected by VAR. This should be enough for committee, first of all, nobody talking about referee is first important thing. But of course, apart from that, we must report a Kuipers below expected level today.
      Now he should focus on EURO as very last big tournament of his long and excellent career.
      A day like this can happen, no doubts, even more when you get so many important games in a short time.

      Delete
    4. We can talk about the RC(s) missed and about everything what could have done differently and all the mistakes. But the only thing I ask myself after tonight is: could someone else have done better in terms of match control? IMO the answer is No. I think even Brych or Makkelie would have had a hard day here. In the end the fact that there is no big talk about this performance is the maximum result possible altough indeed the team made mistakes today....

      Delete
  68. They weren’t really Red Card challenges, hardly any contact on the player, maybe that’s because the players jumped out of the way, I’m not sure. He was the best man to referee this game tonight, his experience and class showed. Tough game but had it been someone else things would’ve really boiled over.

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  69. It's funny to see people here saying that Kuipers will not have the final of the Euro or the big matches of the tournament because of this match. I really appreciate Kuipers, considered for me as No.1 (and I support Paris) and I agree that PSG had a shameful game and that Kuipers' performance was not great. But who would have done better? It is easy to criticize but is the best for this type of matches ...!
    The penalty: fortunately the decision has been corrected!
    Yes, PSG could have taken a total of 4 RCs. The YC towards Herrera was useless. A few days of MCI should (ex: Silva, Fernandinho) take a YC.

    So, Turpin or Mateu for the CL final.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mateu or Makkelie for CL final of course. Turpin for EL final at best

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    2. With Rosetti it’s quite clear if you are one of his favourites and you make mistakes it simply doesn’t matter, we have seen that with Orsato haven’t we!?

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  70. I was wondering if Pochettino should have been at least booked when Di Maria was sent off. He was entering the field to calm down the players, but then you could see after Di Maria was gone he was still arguing with Kuipers. Maybe it would heat up the situation, but personally I would have liked to see some action from Kuipers.

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  71. Not the Best Kuipers today but tomoroow anybody will be Talking about refereeing . PSG cant loosing .

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  72. Breaking news : Herrera and Verratti said after tv interviews that Dutch ref talked to them with insults and disgraceful words as « fuck off » or « fuck u ». Definitely not a good night for Kuipers...

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    Replies
    1. Pff everything is recorded nowadays... this is no breaking news at all. Just sensation. If this is the case it will be heard anyhow. No big news at all for me. Just an angry losing team looking for a scapegoat ignoring their own behavior

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    2. I don’t see the breaking news nor do I see what ‘not a good night for Kuipers’ has to do with two frustrated players of an even more frustrated team whining in front of tv cameras

      Delete
    3. What a ridiculous comment. Kuipers had to keep his composure while Paris players were acting like school children, and now we should believe these bastions of fair play when they give an interview after the match. Paris 100% deserved to lose and Kuipers forgave them SO much too.

      Is it possible for you to ever criticise a French team or referee? Please...

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    4. @Mikael W You‘re absolutely right.

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    5. Hum. Be accused by two players for such comments isn’t a good thing for any ref. And sorry but I didn’t say that was the true. Just facts reported. PSG’s players behavior was horrible. Didn’t say the contrary. Just be more humble Mickael. You are not god eyes...

      Delete
    6. Well not the first time Paris players telling lies about referees. If I remember well Neymar already tried to accuse Kuipers for something similar and of course when they listened recorded material nothing was found there. Then there were some insults, again Neymar, on Instagram against Skomina. As Mikael said, Paris players are acting like school children.

      Delete
    7. Kassai will get the final

      Delete
    8. Or maybe De Bleeckere...

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    9. Mikael spot on. Hypocritical Paris players trying to deflect the blame onto the referee.

      Trying to say that they would get a 10 match ban if they said that to the referee, trying to brainwash the general public into thinking that it isn’t PERFECTLY NORMAL for a player to tell a referee to fuck off. Referees give a lot back too, trust me lol.

      Delete
    10. @Referee analyst
      If you want to advise Mikael to act more humble, let me take the liberty to advise you to reflect on your way of commenting on this blog. Because it’s not only Mikael noticing your (strong) tendency to be harsh towards many (non-French) referees and extremely protective towards the French, especially Clément Turpin. A similar tendency I notice when French teams are involved.

      Delete
  73. In Interview Psg players said that Kuipers talked Them Fuc* Y*u, interested is it possible?

    ReplyDelete
  74. I don't think Kuipers was that bad tonight.

    First decision : the delay in the whistle makes me think that he was told by AR1 or FO to whistle, I don't believe it is his decision.
    One must also praise the rapidity of the VAR call and the OFR, no time wasted.

    First half : I think Kuipers was stuck between two strategies : leniency or sharp line, and he never chose any. I thought he chose leniency, but then he should have avoided that YC to Herrera, and manage the situation differently. Apart from that, a few mistakes in foul detection, but nothing more.

    RC to Di Maria : spot on, and I think it is his decision.

    After that, the game was very hot, especially with PSG players committing many brutal fouls. Kimpembe should've definitely been sent off, I am less convinced for Danilo, I think YC is ok. I don't think Kuipers totally lost control, but we've seen him better for sure. Also I think Fernandinho shouldn't have escaped this match without a YC.

    ReplyDelete
  75. Kimpembe challenge was YC imo, but would’ve been a Red if Jesus hadn’t jumped over it.

    YC to Herrera was a good situation to bring out a card to calm things down, and for the rest of the half after that the game was calm to be fair, so the card had the desired effect.

    As for the PSG players’ comments to the media, to be honest I think it’s got to a point where even a neutral football fan will disregard what they say lol; certainly not the first time the Paris players have blamed the ref for their poor and ill disciplined performance.

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  76. As for the PSG players’ comments to the media, to be honest I think it’s got to a point where even a neutral football fan will disregard what they say lol; certainly not the first time the Paris players have blamed the ref for their poor and ill disciplined performance.

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  77. Let me say, I'm very disappointed by the constant deterioration in quality of comments on the blog. Trolls, haters or fanboys everywhere. I was somewhat addicted to reading and posting comments myself but for a long time I haven't even considered to speak up.

    I still remember the old The Third Team blog, the predecessor of the current Law5. I miss many users offering high-quality, analytical and in-depth inputs in the comment section. RayHD, Swedish Observer, Yun Hyeon come to mind. It was a pleasure to keep checking what's new on the blog, eagerly waiting for new analysis of sometimes niche football games from Asia, Africa...

    Despite the overall skeptical tone of my comment, I want to thank Mikael W and Philipp S for their attempts to make high standards a present, not the past.

    And I want to humbly invite the old (inactive?) users from the old The Third Team blog to become active again with their excellent inputs, making the refereeing blogging great again.

    ReplyDelete