Chelsea
boss Jose Mourinho was not amused by suggestions Branislav Ivanovic had
headbutted Everton
midfielder James
McCarthy during
the Blues’ 1-0 win at Stamford Bridge.
It was a frustrating game for the Premier League leaders, who were constantly rebuffed
by the Toffees’ stubborn defence throughout the match, and the tension boiled
over in a frantic finale.
After Nemanja Matic had what seemed to be a late winning goal ruled out
for offside, players from both teams clashed when Gareth Barry
was dismissed for tripping Blues winner Willian.
Ivanovic motioned his head towards McCarthy in the resulting fracas,
with the Everton substitute booked for his part in the melee, but the Serb
avoided censure from referee Jonathan Moss and could face retrospective action
from the Football Association.
Willian eventually struck the winning goal in the 90th minute as
Chelsea held onto their seven-point lead at the top, but the majority of the
post-match attention went to Ivanovic, which evidently irked manager Mourinho.
"Did Branislav Ivanovic go in with his head? Don't
make me laugh. Don't make me laugh,” said the Blues boss.
Mourinho, who
was last month fined £25,000 for saying there was a "clear campaign"
against Chelsea, was not prepared to discuss the Ivanovic incident
post-match or the possibility the defender would be banned.
He added to BT Sport: "I'm concerned with my reaction, because one
more question I leave. The next question for that story I have to go."
However, the Blues boss continues to imply his side are unfairly
treated and two decisions went in favour of Everton in the opening quarter of
the contest.
Chelsea might have had a fourth-minute penalty when the ball hit Steven
Naismith's arm, and Everton had another reprieve when Barry fouled Juan Cuadrado
and Eden Hazard
in quick succession but was booked only for the first offence.
"I'm tired of stories and I'm never tired of football.
Football is emotion and what we had here today,” the Portuguese said.
"A discussion because of a red card, a red card that should be
given in the first half, because Barry should be sent off in the first half.
"He pulled Hazard. The second yellow card should be given
there."
Mourinho had no complaints with referee Moss' performance, however,
having made a number of tough, but correct, calls during the game.
"I think it's a clear penalty. I also think the referee had a
fantastic performance," the Blues boss added.
“The official that disallowed the goal, it was a fantastic decision,
very good, because it was offside.
"It was a difficult game, very fast but broken at the same time,
very end-to-end, but the referee did well.”
No comments:
Post a Comment