Olympiakos defeat 10-man Burnley
BBC Online :
Burnley manager Sean Dyche felt the officials succumbed to pressure from Olympiakos players during his side’s defeat in the first leg of their Europa League play-off in Athens.
The Clarets lost 3-1 in a game in which their defender Ben Gibson was sent off and both sides awarded a penalty.
Dyche criticised the home team’s conduct at half-time, when it was 1-1.
“They were waiting for the referee. You all saw the feel of the game was different in the second half,” he said.
“The scenes I saw at half-time from all and sundry around the referee on their side, you’re left scratching your head.
“All I keep getting told is respect the officials with your conduct around the referee.”
The score was level at the break, with Chris Wood’s penalty – awarded after he was pushed over in the box – cancelling out a superb free-kick from home captain Kostas Fortounis.
The hosts largely dominated the second half, regaining the lead quickly through Andreas Bouchalakis’ header.
Gibson received a second yellow card for handling in the box after an hour, midfielder Fortounis scoring the resulting penalty.
“I don’t understand why he’s booked Ben Gibson [again],” said Dyche. “The first one maybe, but the second one he’s gone to block a shot and it’s hit his hip, it’s hit his hand. How can that be deemed deliberate handball? It’s just an impossibility.
“Then he gives him the yellow card and it’s probably the world record for how quickly he got it out of his pocket.”
Dyche was also unhappy with the distance the referee asked his players to stand back for the free-kick that opened the scoring for the Greek side.
“The wall is a strange distance from the ball,” he added.
“I feel for our fans. They’ve come a long way to see a balanced game and haven’t seen that. Hopefully next week will be more even.”
The result leaves Burnley facing a formidable task in the second leg at Turf Moor next Thursday (19:45 BST kick-off).
Burnley manager Sean Dyche felt the officials succumbed to pressure from Olympiakos players during his side’s defeat in the first leg of their Europa League play-off in Athens.
The Clarets lost 3-1 in a game in which their defender Ben Gibson was sent off and both sides awarded a penalty.
Dyche criticised the home team’s conduct at half-time, when it was 1-1.
“They were waiting for the referee. You all saw the feel of the game was different in the second half,” he said.
“The scenes I saw at half-time from all and sundry around the referee on their side, you’re left scratching your head.
“All I keep getting told is respect the officials with your conduct around the referee.”
The score was level at the break, with Chris Wood’s penalty – awarded after he was pushed over in the box – cancelling out a superb free-kick from home captain Kostas Fortounis.
The hosts largely dominated the second half, regaining the lead quickly through Andreas Bouchalakis’ header.
Gibson received a second yellow card for handling in the box after an hour, midfielder Fortounis scoring the resulting penalty.
“I don’t understand why he’s booked Ben Gibson [again],” said Dyche. “The first one maybe, but the second one he’s gone to block a shot and it’s hit his hip, it’s hit his hand. How can that be deemed deliberate handball? It’s just an impossibility.
“Then he gives him the yellow card and it’s probably the world record for how quickly he got it out of his pocket.”
Dyche was also unhappy with the distance the referee asked his players to stand back for the free-kick that opened the scoring for the Greek side.
“The wall is a strange distance from the ball,” he added.
“I feel for our fans. They’ve come a long way to see a balanced game and haven’t seen that. Hopefully next week will be more even.”
The result leaves Burnley facing a formidable task in the second leg at Turf Moor next Thursday (19:45 BST kick-off).
