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Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill accuses Phil Dowd of 'making up rules' in League Cup final
O'Neill still not happy after disappointing Wembley defeat...
5 Mar 2010 17:56:00
By Alex Dimond
Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill has accused referee Phil Dowd of "making up the rules as he went along" during the League Cup final.
Villa lost 2-1 to Manchester United at Wembley, in a game where Dowd failed to send off Nemanja Vidic after the Serbian brought Gabriel Agbonlahor down for a fourth-minute penalty.
Milner converted the penalty, but Michael Owen and his replacement Wayne Rooney combined to ensure United emerged victorious. O'Neill feels Dowd's interpretation of the rules on a number of occasions was incorrect, particulary in allowing Vidic to stay on the pitch.
"The decision as it stood on Sunday was a straightforward decision," O'Neill said at a press conference on Friday.
"It was a penalty kick and a sending off offence.
"The referee is there to administer the laws of the game, not to decide at that minute to make up some rules - and that's what Phil did, made them up just as he went along.
"This idea that it is to try and do your best to keep 22 players on the pitch - if players behave themselves then you will keep 22 players on the pitch. That is, unless the referee decides to have another ga-ga moment, or something along the way. It was ridiculous."
O'Neill also added his voice to those who have criticised the Wembley surface, with a number of players slipping over and Michael Owen picking up an injury that will keep him out for the rest of the season.
"It was very poor," he said.
"For a showpiece occasion at Wembley it was very poor. It looked as though they had played about 35 games on it in the previous week. Very poor indeed."
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Villa lost 2-1 to Manchester United at Wembley, in a game where Dowd failed to send off Nemanja Vidic after the Serbian brought Gabriel Agbonlahor down for a fourth-minute penalty.
Milner converted the penalty, but Michael Owen and his replacement Wayne Rooney combined to ensure United emerged victorious. O'Neill feels Dowd's interpretation of the rules on a number of occasions was incorrect, particulary in allowing Vidic to stay on the pitch.
"The decision as it stood on Sunday was a straightforward decision," O'Neill said at a press conference on Friday.
"It was a penalty kick and a sending off offence.
"The referee is there to administer the laws of the game, not to decide at that minute to make up some rules - and that's what Phil did, made them up just as he went along.
"This idea that it is to try and do your best to keep 22 players on the pitch - if players behave themselves then you will keep 22 players on the pitch. That is, unless the referee decides to have another ga-ga moment, or something along the way. It was ridiculous."
O'Neill also added his voice to those who have criticised the Wembley surface, with a number of players slipping over and Michael Owen picking up an injury that will keep him out for the rest of the season.
"It was very poor," he said.
"For a showpiece occasion at Wembley it was very poor. It looked as though they had played about 35 games on it in the previous week. Very poor indeed."
| Sign up with 188BET for a FREE bet up to £25 – Great Prices, Every Game |
|
| Open an account with Sportingbet today and get up to £50 in free bets! |
|
| Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25 |
|
| Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200 |
|
| Sign up with Paddy Power for a free bet up to £50 |
|
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