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Following Neil Warnock’s bemusement towards a reversed penalty decision in Cardiff’s 2-0 loss at Burnley last Saturday, it could be suggested the 70-year-old’s passion is making him a scapegoat for football’s officials.
The incident came in the 48th minute of the game, when Burnley defender Ben Mee headed a Joe Bennett cross from the left against his own arm. The linesman Darren Cann flagged, prompting Mike Dean to point to the spot in typically decisive fashion, however the decision was quickly reversed.
This sparked outrage from Cardiff coaching staff, players and fans alike, as it spared the Bluebirds a crucial penalty which had they scored, would’ve given them a lifeline in the game and a massive boost in the Premier League survival race.
The scandal comes just a week after Warnock blasted Craig Pawson for his performance during their game against Chelsea, in which defender Cesar Azpilicueta scored from an obvious offside position.
The Bluebirds boss confronted the officials on the pitch in the game’s immediate aftermath, but the real damage was done in his post-match interviews where he exclaimed Premier League officials were “the worst in the world”.
The rant earned the Cardiff coach a treble-charge from the FA, as he was accused of improperly questioning the integrity of match officials and implying bias, thus warranting his more diplomatic response to Saturday’s incident;
“I’m just trying not to get fined. People say you’re still smiling, but I’m absolutely distraught underneath.
“I’ve spoken to Mike, but I’ve got to accept what he said. I don’t want any more charges, do I? I’ve got three this week! I don’t want to have to book a hotel down there!”.
Despite these tongue-in-mouth comments from Warnock, it’s a bizarre refereeing decision that has dealt a major blow to Cardiff’s survival hopes, leaving them five points adrift with just five games left to play – two of which are against Liverpool and Manchester United.
Whilst the Bluebirds managed a vital away win at the hands of relegation rivals Brighton in midweek, reducing the gap between the teams to just two points, Chris Hughton’s side still have a game in hand over their Welsh counterparts and a significantly better goal difference.
This all makes for a difficult run-in for Cardiff, made worse by regular refereeing mishaps that are occurring more frequently for the third-from-bottom side. And, considering the futile ferocity of Warnock’s recent outburst, you wouldn’t be blamed for thinking Dean’s controversial call on Saturday was subliminal revenge for what was a scathing attack on British referees.
This animosity between officials and the Sheffield-born manager is no surprise, though, as Warnock is renowned for his deferential attitudes towards referees after various fallouts during his 37-year-long managerial career.
Warnock’s war of words came to the fore most significantly during his spell out of the game in 2013, where he established himself as an outspoken columnist for The Independent.
In one of his pieces, he launched a scathing attack on former Premier League referee Graham Poll, claiming he is “so far up his own backside he’s impossible to talk to”.
Similarly, in 2016 shortly after becoming Cardiff manager and following their 1-2 victory at Nottingham Forest, Warnock claimed referee Andy Woolmer had awarded the hosts a penalty in the closing minutes because he was “bored”.
Although Warnock’s colourful and charismatic demeanour is fruitfully entertaining for us neutrals, this long track record of disrespectful outbursts and unsavoury satire towards the game’s regulators has undoubtedly left a sour taste in the mouths of those it’s subjected to – it’s now coming back to bite Warnock and Cardiff in the bottom.