Analyze “Collina’s heirs”.
Why Manuel Graefe’s criticism is exaggerated
By Alex Feuerherdt
5/22/2023 7:24 am
The referee confidently directs the top game between Bayern and Leipzig, otherwise the referees are not the focus. A former referee is still dissatisfied. However, he overshoots the mark.
Actually, on this penultimate day of the Bundesliga match, the referees were not overly focused on controversial decisions. In the top game between FC Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig (1: 3), there were two penalties against the still champions, which converted the guests to victory. However, the Munich team fully accepted both decisions made by the superior referee Deniz Aytekin, and the referee was not a topic of conversation for the teams after the final whistle. The teams accepted his generous line in the duel evaluation well, and as so often Aytekin moderated conflicts skilfully.
Even in the relegation battle, there were few discussions about the referees, despite the importance of some decisions. In the encounter between Hertha BSC and VfL Bochum (1-1), Felix Brych canceled a goal by Dodi Lukebakio after 20 minutes following an on-field review because Stevan Jovetić had previously pulled Bochum’s Ivan Ordets to the ground in midfield . Referee Christian Dingert awarded TSG 1899 Hoffenheim a penalty in the 35th minute in the game against 1. FC Union Berlin (4:2) when the score was 1:0 after he saw in the review area that Diogo Leite im Duel with Christoph Baumgartner first blocked the ball, but then hit his opponent on the foot with the studs.
In the game between FC Schalke 04 and Eintracht Frankfurt (1-1), referee Daniel Schlager insisted, even after looking at the images on the monitor, that Christopher Lenz’s upper body against Schalke’s Cedric Brunner before the Frankfurt equalizer made it 1-1 after 21 minutes minutes was still within the permissible. A reasonable decision. On the other hand, he did not rate Henning Matriciani’s tackle against Frankfurt’s Buta in the Schalke penalty area in the 77th minute as illegal, even though Schalke had not played the ball and Buta had fallen over him. That was clearly worth discussing.
Manuel Gräfe misses the line
The teams were able to live with all of these decisions, and even after the final whistle the referees were not the focus of the debates. Ironically, a former referee was still dissatisfied with them and put them in the spotlight: Manuel Graefe once again clearly criticized his former colleagues both on ZDF and on his Twitter account. Above all, he lacks the line in some decisions across the game. “In the Bundesliga, one game is currently decided in one way and unfortunately the next is completely different,” he tweeted. Hence the dissatisfaction of players and fans.
Gräfe compared Jovetić’s save against Ordets, which led to Hertha BSC withdrawing the goal, with Leipzig’s Amadou Haidara grabbing Leon Goretzka’s jersey, just before the corner kick was taken for Bayern Munich and Bayern Munich could be countered and had to accept the first goal. From the point of view of the ex-Fifa referee, these scenes should have been evaluated in the same way, namely either as a foul play or as an action that still conforms to the rules within the scope of the referee’s discretionary powers. The 49-year-old added two more scenes from the games VfB Stuttgart – Bayer 04 Leverkusen and 1. FSV Mainz 05 – FC Schalke 04 to his comparison.
From Gräfe’s point of view, the evaluation of handballs is too inconsistent. For example, a handball by Stuttgart’s Tiago Tomás in his own penalty area in the game against Bayer 04 Leverkusen on matchday 32 was not penalized even though the “hand was held in the trajectory”. In the handball of Munich’s Noussair Mazraoui in the game against RB Leipzig, on the other hand, a penalty kick was recognized, although there was no intention and the arm was close to the body. “Mistakes happen, but in times of VAR it should be possible to hold processes and process handball according to clear specifications,” wrote the former referee, who led 268 Bundesliga games.
What distinguishes the decisions in Berlin and Munich
A rule interpretation that is as predictable and uniform as possible is probably in everyone’s interests, but that is a Herculean task in a set of rules whose application in practice involves large gray areas and discretionary scope. Referee Felix Brych rightly pointed out in the talk show “Doppelpass” on Sunday that it is often difficult to compare scenes “because they are always different”. Sometimes it’s just nuances that tip the scales in one direction or the other when evaluating handballs or duels. Not infrequently, this also depends on the referee’s line in the respective game, which in turn should be based on the game character and the way the teams play.
Nevertheless, there are of course principles and specifications in the interpretation of the rules that apply independently of this. For example, the fact that there are often fights with hands and arms before the game is restarted near the goal and that the referee cannot keep an eye on all the pairs of players at the same time is taken into account in practice: what happens far away from the ball , matters less than what happens where the ball is or is going. In addition, not every brief grab on the opponent’s jersey is automatically punishable – it depends above all on the consequences: Will this opponent be brought down, prevented from running or forced to lose the ball?
Graefe’s comparison of the scenes in Berlin and Munich is not well chosen in this respect. Jovetić in a dynamic situation visibly pulled Ordets’ shirt and grabbed his shoulder, bringing him to the ground and taking him out of the game. That was crucial for Lukebakio then having a clear path and scoring. It is true that Ordets also “worked” with one arm, as Gräfe claimed – but this operation was of far less intensity and duration, so it was not to be equated with Jovetić’s actions. Haidara, on the other hand, only briefly tugged at Goretzka’s shirt before the corner kick, and it is doubtful that that was the reason why the Munich player went down. The ball also didn’t come close to the two.
Gräfe’s criticism is exaggerated
It was therefore understandable and at least justifiable that Deniz Aytekin decided differently than his colleague Felix Brych, although he had also initially allowed play to continue. But the pictures in the on-field review rightly changed his mind. Manuel Gräfe is right when he says that in both cases a different decision would have been possible and would have been covered by the rules. But the situations are not to be equated because they differ in essential characteristics. Therefore, the comparison here is not suitable to determine an inconsistent interpretation of the rules on this point.
“Collina’s heirs” – this is Germany’s first referee podcast, founded and run by Klaas Reese and Alex Feuerherdt. It deals with the football rules, the decisions of the referees and the background and shallows of refereeing. “Collinas Erben” write every Monday on ntv. de about the referee performance of the Bundesliga matchday Our author is Alex Feuerherdt referee since 1985 and officiated games up to the Oberliga. He is responsible for training and further education in Cologne, referee observer in the area of the DFB and works as a lecturer and freelance journalist.
The handballs of Tomás and Mazraoui show more similarities: The respective arm was close to the body – which is an extremely important criterion – but at the same time was guided to the ball. The problem here is that, in terms of rules, two decisions are justifiable, which accordingly does not make the other clear and obviously wrong. One may lament the fact that different decisions have emerged. But the VAR is not there to ensure standardization in the interpretation of the rules, but to intervene in the event of clear errors and serious overlooked incidents. So in situations where there is no discretion.
The fact that there is room for improvement in terms of uniformity and consistency in the interpretation of the rules cannot be denied. At the same time, it seems exaggerated when a former Bundesliga referee starts general criticism again on a match day with generally satisfactory performances by the referees – and a particularly confident performance by the referee in the top game. Technically speaking, he doesn’t necessarily have the arguments on his side.