Ovrebo: My errors cost Chelsea in 2009 semi
Whatever helps you sleep through the night. Anything that includes Barca, you must defend to the end. The ref had a bad game and that happens, he even admitted it was a bad game by him, so I don't see the point in acting like it wasn't.
Where does he admit to anything? I haven't seen every interview he has given since of course, but I have yet to see him admitting to make a mistake. He once said in Norwegian that his decisions might have cost Chelsea the tie, but he just as well could have said the opposite if he had given one of those and Barcelona had gone out due to that decision. Even if he is an arrogant "%%"% he is also quite clever so a good way of making Chelseafans believe he takes responsibility without actually doing it.
I passionately hate Øvrebø (within the context of football). He is funnily enough trained as a psychologist, but rarely have I ever seen a ref with so little understanding of human behaviour).
I have discussed that game with many Chelseafans in real life and what I find interesting is how everyone agree on Øvrebø "cheating" them, but none of them can agree on which situations where poorly handled - just the accumulated effect. A ref cannot ref a game based on accumulated effects.
1. Malouda: Could have been a penalty, but obviously not a stonewall one. Personally I think Malouda is looking for it and even if it is borderline I wouldn't have given it myself.
2. Drogba: Should have been a penalty, but I remember seeing it live thinking Drogba stumbles.
3. Pique: Would have been a handball today, but not a given in 2009. Personally no handball for me.
4. Second handball: How can the ref in real time see if that hits his side or his arm? With VAR it is a penalty, but again those were not as easily given in 2009 as in 2020.
I can perfectly well see why some might disagree with that assessment, but I have yet to meet a Chelseafan in real life that after calming down can't see that a) no penalty was obvious in real time b) the accumulated effect makes it difficult for a fan emotionally, but a ref cannot ref a game based on that. Øvrebø was damned either way in that game. Probably karma.
Chelsea were unlucky not to get any of those decisions, but completely overblown how poorly the ref did. Even with VAR decisions are gotten wrong that are much worse than any of those 4.
