Howard Webb reveals his biggest mistake helped Manchester United beat Liverpool to the Premier League title
Howard Webb believes the biggest mistake of his career came at Old Trafford in 2009 and not in the 2010 World Cup final.
The Englishman was the man in the middle for the feisty clash between the Netherlands and Spain in South Africa and became the centre of attention.
Howard Webb believes awarding a Manchester United penalty in 2009 was the biggest mistake of his career
A rash challenge by former Manchester City midfielder Nigel de Jong – widely considered something of a kung-fu kick – left Xabi Alonso crumpled in a heap in the middle of the pitch, with a red card seemingly the only option.
Webb, however, only produced a yellow card official – but the official from Rotherham believes the biggest mistake of his career came 15 months earlier.
Manchester United found themselves 2-0 down to Tottenham at home on April 25, with bitter rivals Liverpool breathing down their necks.
With just five games of the season to go, defeat would have left United level on points with Rafael Benitez’s men – who had beaten the Red Devils 4-1 at Old Trafford that season.
But the momentum of the game swung dramatically before the hour mark when Webb awarded the hosts what seemed to be a stonewall penalty after Heurelho Gomes felled Michael Carrick in the box.
But all was not as it seemed.
Webb only issued a yellow card for this challenge in the 2010 World Cup final
“I could see Carrick got there first and then the goalkeeper clattered into him. It was really an easy penalty award,” Webb told The Athletic.
“I was expecting the usual cursory appeal that you get from the players, not the huge look of absolute astonishment and amazement and incredulousness on the look of Gomes.
“It was obvious within seconds I’d got the decision wrong. There was something more to this.
“I was left with the decision I had taken with no independent evidence that I’d got it wrong other than a gut feeling, and I was just hoping that [Cristiano] Ronaldo would miss the penalty. But he didn’t.”
Ronaldo scored twice to help United to a 5-2 win
The equaliser came moments later when Wayne Rooney combined with Rafael and Dimitar Berbatov, before Ronaldo sparked wild scenes of jubilation as Rooney crossed for the Portugal captain to send a diving header past Gomes.
Rooney got on the scoresheet again, before former Spurs striker Berbatov made it 5-2 to boost the Red Devils’ goal difference.
The win left the defending champions three points clear of Liverpool, with a game in hand before they went to Middlesbrough.
It was United who went on to win the title that season instead of Liverpool, with Webb left to reflect on what he felt was a huge moment in his career.
Harry Redknapp speaking after the game
“The turning point was definitely the penalty. It turned the game in their favour without a doubt.
“At that stage I couldn’t see us getting beat. It was a gift which wasn’t deserved. It was a terrible decision.
“Howard [Webb] is supposed to be our best ref, but if he’s the best I’d hate to see the worst.”
“Football is trying to come back for one reason: money! It’s an insidious, ghastly carousel!” – Simon Jordan’s verdict on Premier League’s ‘project restart’
But what did he feel when he blew his whistle and pointed to the spot on that fateful April afternoon?
“Just ‘Oh s***’, really,” he said. “You just know.
“You can tell as a ref. You can see the momentum shift.
“You can see the way the game is going. At 2-1, you never know. At 2-2, you can see the way this game is going.”
No comments:
Post a Comment