Tottenham Hotspur manager Andre Villas-Boas has slammed referee Martin Atkinson for booking winger http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Gareth-Bale-c14422 for diving in the 1-2 win over Sunderland this past Saturday.
Bale received his 5th booking in 16 months for simulation, and is set to miss next week’s game against Reading on New Year’s day. Villas-Boas believes that the winger has been unfairly treated by officials in the league and said that the player
does not deserve his reputation as a diver.
The Welsh winger was once again in inspiring form and was involved at the heart of every Tottenham attack despite not being able to feature on the score sheet. However, his performance was overshadowed by his booking in the second half.
After second viewing, it was clear that http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Craig-Gardner-c9475 had made clear contact with Bale in the box, but the player’s reputation for diving misled referee Martin Atkinson in to producing a yellow card.
Despite the slight contact, Bale still made a meal of the incident and went down rather easily. The player received his 5th booking for simulation in over 16 months and his 3rd this season in the Premier League.
Villas-Boas was furious with the incident and has slammed the referee for his poor judgement. Speaking to reporters after the game, the manager voiced his frustrations and complaints. He said:
“It was a big mistake from the referee. I understand that reputations are created from the outside – from the media – and it’s a bit unfair. If you see the images, Gardner focuses not on the ball but the player. It’s extremely unfair that he missed the Reading
game for such a big mistake.”
“If I’m not wrong, we had the same situation with Defoe in the first half. It looks like persecution against Bale. To see Bale punished again is a little bit unfair.”
Bale himself was very furious with the yellow card decision was further aggravated by the fact that he will miss the Reading game. Spurs have moved back to 4th spot after the win over Sunderland, but despite the result, the players and the manager
were upset with the referee’s decision.
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