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Was Roberto Martinez right to rail against 'diabolical' referee Mike Jones?

ByReuters

Updated 17/01/2016 at 11:46 GMT

In-depth: Everton manager Roberto Martinez was left fuming by John Terry's 98th-minute offside equaliser that earned Chelsea a thrilling 3-3 draw on Saturday, describing the failure by the officials to disallow it as "diabolical".

Everton's Spanish manager Roberto Martinez shouts from the touchline

Image credit: AFP

What happened?

The visitors looked on course for their first Premier League win at Stamford Bridge for 22 years after Ramiro Funes Mori acrobatically put them ahead in the 90th minute, but ultimately paid a heavy price for spending so long celebrating the goal with their fans in the corner.
The fourth official's board indicated seven minutes of stoppage time and that, plus another 51 seconds, had ticked by when Terry, who was clearly offside, sent his backheel into the net.

What did Martinez say?

"It's heartbreaking for us, a big, big error," Martinez told reporters. "It was a fantastic game for the fans, but the level of refereeing was diabolical. You expect linesmen to be in better positions, Terry was already offside and the flick on made him two yards offside. That's not an interpretation, there is no explanation.
If you ask any Chelsea fan they will tell you it was offside. It is clear-cut and an incredible decision to see in what we consider the best league in the world. I am very angry. We drew a football game because of a horrific decision right at the end. It doesn't come down to the interpretation of the referee - he just wasn't up to the level. It's heartbreaking, a major error which is difficult to take.
"The fourth official said the time was up. The seven minutes was difficult, but you cannot explain another 50 seconds. It was a fantastic performance, showing great skill and character, but there is an understandable feeling of frustration."

What was Guus Hiddink's interpretation?

The Chelsea manager thought the added time was correct given how long it took for Everton to celebrate their third goal, although he did admit the goal was offside.
"They were celebrating their third goal, we asked the fourth official to add a minute for that, that was fair I think," said Hiddink.
"I won't deny it and say I didn't see the goal. It was offside, but it was technically the perfect finish.

Was Martinez right to slam the referee?

The offside decision was an absolute travesty and Martinez is well within his rights to be angry about it, but that decision can be attributed to the assistant. Secondly, injury time is always a minimum, not a set guide, and with Everton prolonged celebrations after the goal by Funes Mori it's not ridiculous that the referee added a bit more on. It's understadable that Martinez was so angry - but he should also take a look at his players, who consistently struggle to hold onto leads and have issues in defence.
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