Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho insists that his players “are not getting the respect they deserve” as refereeing decisions go against them and has slammed Burnley’s Ashley Barnes for a dangerous challenge, a reaction to which saw Nemanja Matic sent off.
After his side’s 1-1 draw with the Clarets on Saturday, the Portuguese was incensed at what he felt were four major incidents which saw the visitors unpunished and his side hindered.
Speaking to Sky Sports’ ‘Goals on Sunday’, Mourinho claimed to be at a loss for words at the severity of Barnes’s challenge.
“I know football is football but I think it’s too much,” he said of his argument that too many decisions go against his side. “I think my players don’t deserve that. At Southampton, the penalty, against Tottenham with [Jan] Vertonghen, against Liverpool…
“I don’t have the adjective for Barnes. This is the end of [a] career. Matic is a lucky guy. I cannot find the word to describe what that player did. Football is about emotions and clearly Matic had a reason to lose his emotions.
“What are the consequences of the Matic push for the other player? Nothing. The consequence for Matic could be end of career. When probably they are going to give three matches [as a suspension] to Matic, you tell me how many matches [Barnes] deserves.”
Mourinho has previously been sanctioned by the Football Association for speaking out about a perceived “campaign” against his team but he is adamant that he has behaved objectively.
“It is what it is and I think, if you go over the line in your comments, it’s understandable [to punish a manager] but, if you say what is obvious without attacking people, I think it shouldn’t be a problem,” he continued.
“So to say that, at half-time, Burnley should be playing with 10 men and Chelsea should have two penalties – and normally you win 3-0 [from there] – and the reality is that, in the end, you’re at 10 men and you’ve lost a point […] I can’t imagine that the four incidents were open to interpretation.
“The best players in the world, they can make mistakes. This gentleman is one of the top referees in this country; in European football … he can also make mistakes.
“You want consistency but in the right way. It’s like the lawyer who lost 15 out of 15 cases … you don’t want this lawyer.
“I’m always positive. I’m not attacking the honesty, the dignity of anyone. I’m not trying to – you love to say this sentence in this country – bringing the game into disrepute. That’s what they always say when they punish me.”
