Referee Tom Henning Ovrebo opens up on the death threats he received after the controversial Chelsea vs Barcelona semi-final. The former referee from Norway has discussed the night that saw him become “the biggest fool in international football” when he officiated one of the most controversial Champions League matches of all-time a decade ago.
Barcelona won the second leg of their semi-final tie with the Blues on away goals thanks to a late strike by Andres Iniesta, but the match will always be remembered for Ovrebo's appalling officiating. The Norwegian official failed to award four penalties and a red card in Chelsea's favour at Stamford Bridge, which ultimately ended the Blues” European hopes while staining the official”s career. And speaking in a candid interview with Panenka magazine ten years on from that infamous night, Ovrebo recalled how he and his team required a police escort to leave the country, while lamenting the fact VAR was not available at the time. “I wish I had the help of the VAR that day,” said Ovrebo. ”After the first half, my assistants and I felt that we had control. At the end of the match, however, I did not have that feeling. When I got to the dressing room I thought: “Okay, Tom Henning, this has not been your best night”.” A catalogue of errors led to heated scenes at full time, where Chelsea players surrounded the official and an enraged Didier Drogba shouted to television cameras that the match had been a “disgrace, a f****** disgrace”.
Chelsea took an early lead through Michael Essien, who rifled home a volley from distance, before the controversy started and Ovrebo lost control of the match. Florent Malouda was the first to be denied a penalty after appearing to be hauled down inside the penalty area by Dani Alves - with the foul awarded outside instead - before Drogba was brought down by Barcelona left-back Eric Abidal, who somehow avoided conceding a clear penalty and receiving a red card. He was later dismissed for a soft foul on Nicolas Anelka in the second half, which was followed by two clear handball shouts; the first saw Gerard Pique palm the ball away as Anelka sought to go past him, and the second came after Iniesta”s equaliser, when Michael Ballack”s goal-bound shot was blocked by Samuel Eto”o”s arm. After the Ballack incident, Ovrebo revealed he told himself to “keep calm”, but inside, he was anything but that. “I must admit that inside I was boiling,” he added. “It was in the dressing room that I realised how controversial everything had been. In the space of two hours, I went from being a fairly respected referee to becoming the biggest fool in international football.” Chelsea”s rage on the field was shared by coach Guus Hiddink, who described Ovrebo”s performance as the worst he”d ever seen. But the anger emanated beyond the Stamford Bridge turf as supporters rightly felt a deep sense of injustice. However, for Ovrebo, that meant a distressing trip to the airport, followed by appalling abuse and death threats. “They put us in police escort until we could get a plane and return home,” he said. “(The death threats) came more from the frustration of not winning that match and my performance in it, than from the real desire to kill me and my family.”
The performance itself had long lasting ramifications for the Norwegian's refereeing career. He was unable to go to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, while UEFA prevented him from speaking out. ”I did not go to the World Cup,” he added. “My team and I knew we had a good chance of going if we did a good job at Stamford Bridge. In the end, we did not do it, and I think it”s natural that our chance to be at the World Cup in South Africa disappeared.” On UEFA he added: “First they wanted the investigation into the match to end. They did not want any comments in the press that could intensify the situation, “he recalls, and acknowledges that “ it would have been very good to have been able to publicly express everything I felt about it.” The full interview with Tom Henning Ovrebo can be read in the latest edition of Panenka magazine.
Source: DailyMail
