Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho hates referees, but his decision to blame Martin Atkinson for his side’s failure to win at Newcastle United on Saturday evening was beyond ridiculous.
The Blues were pretty awful for much of the game and, as a consequence, found themselves 2-0 down.
However, a stunning long-range strike from Ramires sparked a comeback, before Willian found the net with a free-kick which deceived goalkeeper Tim Krul.
Willian’s equaliser came on 87 minutes, before four minutes of stoppage time were allocated.
SEE MORE: Ramires goal video & Chelsea player ratings from 2-2 draw with Newcastle
Despite having seven minutes to potentially score a winning goal, Mourinho reckons Chelsea hardly stood a chance because of Mr Atkinson’s style of refereeing.
Mourinho was not asked about Mr Atkinson in his post-match interview with Sky Sports, but he decided to talk about the referee anyway.
He said: “When we scored the second goal, I felt immediately that it was difficult to win it because I knew what Newcastle want for that period and I know also the kind of referee Mr Atkinson is.
“[He] stops the game… foul… gives time… speaks too much… long conversations with the players.”
Atkinson is one of England’s finest officials, but he once made a high-profile error, which benefited Chelsea.
The Bradford-born Man-in-Black awarded the Blues a ‘ghost-goal’ against Tottenham Hotspur in a 2012 FA Cup semi-final at Wembley Stadium.
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