A&H

Vancouver head coach veiled death threat against MLS official

RefIADad

RefIADad

RefChat Addict

Vancouver Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini insinuated that if referee Tim Ford were found face down in a creek after last night's game, that the cops would come looking for him.

The tweet pretty much says it all. Imagine someone saying this about a co-worker, customer, or vendor if that person didn't like something done in the office. I hope the Whitecaps fire Sartini for cause today and that MLS does not allow him to coach in the league for at least a year. It would also be good if any other team had to "show cause" to hire him after this as well.
 
The Referee Store
Not sure I agree that it's quite as serious as you make out.

Not an ideal comment but a very long way from a direct/indirect death threat imo.
 
Just saw the clip towards the end of the game. Regrettable, but these things happen. Nothing the referee could do once it had happened.
Was there VAR? The goal that followed looked offside. The clip I saw doesn't show the outcome save for some very obvious failure to control charges.
 
JamesL said:
Just saw the clip towards the end of the game. Regrettable, but these things happen. Nothing the referee could do once it had happened.
Was there VAR? The goal that followed looked offside. The clip I saw doesn't show the outcome save for some very obvious failure to control charges.
Click to expand...
Yeah it was disallowed for offside
 
JamesL said:
Just saw the clip towards the end of the game. Regrettable, but these things happen. Nothing the referee could do once it had happened.
Was there VAR? The goal that followed looked offside. The clip I saw doesn't show the outcome save for some very obvious failure to control charges.
Click to expand...
As @es1 stated, there was a VAR review for offside on the ensuing LAFC counterattack, and the goal was disallowed.

I read the tweet and tried to think of a context where Sartini’s comments are close to acceptable. I can’t think of one. Sartini is absolutely known as a loose cannon at the best of times in MLS. But this is crossing a line even for him. I just don’t see how anyone can read that and think there is any sort of justification.

My posting history on here regarding Arteta is well documented. I think he needs to lay off officials more, but when you compare his comments this weekend to what Sartini said there is no logical comparison. Sure, Arteta can and should be fined for his comments, primarily because he’s a repeat offender. But he’s never gone this far.
 
In reality did he mean the comment? Highly doubtful. However, if you went into your place of work and made that comment to someone, there's a very good chance you would find yourself in front of HR.

Referee bashing is becoming more & more common at all levels of football. Yes part of it comes down to refereeing errors, but it also comes down to people wanting the perfect outcomes to imperfect situations. As well as coaches, players, fans & pundits having very little clue on the laws. With an even smaller desire to bother learning them.
 
It isn't a direct or indirect threat, but it could be argued that he is suggesting that the referee could / should come to harm as a result of a football decision. He should find himself in a lot of trouble for that.
 
I think, if you read what he said again, you'll find that he said if the referee came to harm, the police would probably look at him as a suspect because there's a motive. That's not a threat, necessarily, but it is a ridiculous thing to say.
 
RyantheRef said:
I think, if you read what he said again, you'll find that he said if the referee came to harm, the police would probably look at him as a suspect because there's a motive. That's not a threat, necessarily, but it is a ridiculous thing to say.
Click to expand...
Sartini has claimed he was joking, but the idea of “joking” about a referee’s death is not close to appropriate. I don’t see any material difference between this and “I’m going to kill him”, as we have learned what vague and indirect language can lead to in the last few years.

To continue the issues surrounding physical safety of MLS officials, former Chelsea loan army defender Matt Miazga is being investigated for an incident where he allegedly entered the referee room after a playoff game last week. The issue is no one really knows the extent of the transgression, and video hasn’t been made public yet.

www.espn.com

Sources: MLS investigating Miazga's ref approach

Major League Soccer (MLS) is investigating an alleged incident in which a player was forcibly removed from the match officials' locker room after a game last week between the New York Red Bulls and FC Cincinnati, the league said on Tuesday.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
 
In all my years refereeing, I genuinely don't think I've ever seen the negativity this high outside of grassroots.

We've known about the issues within grassroots, but it seems yo be getting worse than ever in the pro game. Of course the media and broadcastsrs love it as its clickbait for them. But I'm not sure how much longer it can go on.
 
On TNT sports yesterday, before the Dortmund Newcastle game one of the commentators mentioned that UEFA have a campaign to address the chronic shortage of referees. The commentator then went on to say good luck to anyone wanting to become a referee in what I thought was a condescending way.
 
Runner-Ref said:
In all my years refereeing, I genuinely don't think I've ever seen the negativity this high outside of grassroots.

We've known about the issues within grassroots, but it seems yo be getting worse than ever in the pro game. Of course the media and broadcastsrs love it as its clickbait for them. But I'm not sure how much longer it can go on.
Click to expand...
I take no joy in saying this, but I think we will see a major physical altercation involving a match official in a high-profile professional league before the Champions League final. The attitude toward officials is extremely toxic right now, and there will be an incident that causes someone to snap. I hope I’m wrong, but ever since the Anthony Taylor incident in Budapest, things are just building.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top