Manchester United Fans

Man United are three wins away from a Champions League return

Bruno Fernandes: “I don’t talk about the referee… it I talk about the referee, I will get in a BIG TROUBLE”, told Sky.

Referees make two kinds of mistakes. The kind that gets talked about and the kind that gets buried. Today there was one of each. Lisandro Martinez was sent off for pulling Calvert-Lewin's hair. IFAB Law 12 explicitly states that a player must be sent off for making a clear action to pull the hair of an opponent with force. The referee saw force and the law gave him no alternative. That decision has a legal basis whether you agree with the assessment or not. Then there is the first goal Leeds scored today. Okafor fouled Leny Yoro before his header that led to the opener. That foul was not called and the goal stood. Bruno Fernandes stood in front of Sky Sports cameras afterwards and said he could not talk about the referee or he would get into big trouble. He did not need to say anything else. The smile said the rest. Both things can be true simultaneously. The red card was legally defensible. The uncalled foul was not. United have a genuine grievance on one count and a harder argument on the other. Knowing which is which matters. The reason Bruno Fernandes unfortunately could not speak freely is FA Rule E3. It prohibits any player, manager or club official from making post-match comments that imply bias, question the integrity of a match official, or bring the game into disrepute. It is a serious offence under the FA Rukes. Marco Silva was fined £80,000 under FA Rule E3 for post-match comments implying bias against a referee following a Premier League match in December 2023. José Mourinho was fined £50,000 and handed a suspended stadium ban for suggesting a referee was afraid to give a penalty. The rule exists, in theory, to protect referees from reputational damage and to maintain the integrity of officiating. In practice it means that the people with the most direct experience of refereeing decisions, the players and managers on the pitch, are the ones legally prevented from discussing them publicly. Everyone else, pundits, journalists, fans, can say exactly what they think. The participant who lived it cannot. That tension is not incidental to football's relationship with accountability. It is central to it. Referees do not have perfect games. Neither do players. The difference is that players face consequences for their errors in real time. Referees do not and players can't complain. How fair exactly is that? My name is Ajoje. I am a FIFA Licensed Agent and International Sports Lawyer. I write on the Law and Business of Football, a lot. Repost and Follow if you want to read more posts like this.

🚨🗣️ Bruno Fernandes:

"What I always say to the club is: ‘You can’t promise me that I’m going to win the Premier League. That’s impossible. But if you promise me that we’re going to be competitive and we’re going to be there at the end... that’s all I need to know. Because then it’s on me to become the best version of myself, to help everyone around to become the best version of themselves, to become the club we want to be."