Emma Hayes blasts ‘worst decisions in Women’s Champions League history’ after Chelsea exit
Emma Hayes strongly criticized the red card given to Kadeisha Buchanan and the penalty awarded for Chelsea's 2-0 loss to Barcelona, deeming them as the most terrible rulings in the history of Uefa Women’s Champions League.
In the second leg, Chelsea had a one-goal advantage after defeating Barcelona at home, which ended their five-year unbeaten streak. However, Aitana Bonmatí's shot deflected off Buchanan's leg, resulting in the equalizer for Barcelona. Later, Buchanan received two yellow cards that seemed too easy, leading to Chelsea playing with ten players. Moreover, the referee, Iuliana Demetrescu, awarded a penalty kick that many questioned its legitimacy.
"I thought we were gaining momentum, and the energy from both the fans and players was motivating us. They were feeling very self-assured, so when we received a completely unfair call from the referee, there was nothing we could do to change it," explained Hayes. "It's already challenging to play with a full team of eleven, but with only ten players, it becomes almost unfeasible."
The Barcelona team members expressed their gratitude towards the referee. I personally didn't perceive it to be a violation, and definitely not deserving of a yellow card.
The manager of Chelsea expressed her shock at discovering that Demetrescu had been chosen to officiate the semi-final match. She believed that her team hadn't received a fair chance to lose the game, as certain decisions were taken out of their hands. It came as a surprise to her that the referee selected was known for handing out easy cards. In her opinion, these decisions were perhaps the most unfavorable ones to ever be made in the history of the Uefa Women's Champions League.
Hayes expressed her strong disappointment for her players and revealed they were feeling devastated as they felt like they were unfairly deprived of something.
When Buchanan left the game, it appeared that the referee did not remember that the player had already received a warning when she gave a less severe second warning. Hayes requested a review by a video assistant referee, but the officials couldn't do it because it wasn't a straight red card. According to Hayes, this was the biggest issue. She explained that she asked the fourth official if the call would be reviewed and was told that it couldn't be for a yellow card.
The granting of the penalty to Bonmatí stirred up controversy. Hayes expressed her opinion by saying, "I also found it to be a mild call. However, Bonmatí is a remarkable player. She is quite shrewd, considering that Ashley [Lawrence] was positioned on her outer side. Aitana [Bonmatí] left her leg there on purpose."
Jonatan Giráldez, the manager of Barcelona, didn't seem bothered by the controversy. He referred to a previous game where a VAR decision went against them. Giráldez said that it's all part of the game and things like this can happen.
