Manchester City boss, Manuel Pellegrini, has said sorry for accusing Swedish referee Jonas Eriksson of partiality, after they lost to Barcelona in the Champions League this week.
The Chilean was furious after the official failed to award a free kick, when Jesus Navas was fouled in the build-up to Barca’s opening goal. He was also not pleased when Eriksson awarded a penalty which Messi converted, despite the foul appearing to take place outside the box.
Pellegrini is likely to be fined/banned by UEFA, but has admitted that he was caught up in the emotion of a loss.
“We lost the game we lost against Barcelona, you are frustrated and angry,” he told reporters. “Maybe I said something but I don’t think that way. I want to apologise.
“I want to clarify there was no serious accusation to the referee or to Uefa.
“I said the referee decided the match because he didn’t give us foul against Jesus Navas and then to the penalty we had a player sent off in that moment.
“The referee decided the game. A lot of time he didn’t give the foul.
“It’s a difficult profession, he had a bad day and I didn’t say that he was a bad referee.”
Speaking after the match on Tuesday evening, Pellegrini said of Eriksson: “He favoured Barcelona from the beginning to the end. I think it was not a good idea to put a referee from Sweden in charge and a referee who made a mistake against Barcelona in the group stages. Football is more important in Europe than Sweden.
“This referee [officiated in] the Barcelona-Milan game in the group and he made an important error against Barcelona. Today he remedied it.”