“Should have been a penalty”- Referee admits Chelsea was denied a penalty against Barcelona in the 2009 Champions League semi-finals

“Should have been a penalty”- Referee admits Chelsea was denied a penalty against Barcelona in the 2009 Champions League semi-finals

On this day in 2009, Chelsea was defeated by Barcelona in the semifinal match of the Champions League 2008-09 which saw the referee deny one or maybe more penalties to the Blues in one of the controversial decisions in football. The decision kept the Blues away from reaching the final and the referee became a hate figure for his performance in the match. 

Florent Malouda claimed a penalty as he was tripped by Dani Alves on the edge of the penalty box, but referee Tom Ovrebo waved away the penalty shout followed by a foul on Didier Drogba by Eric Abidal.

The referee, in a recent interview, claimed that it wasn’t an easy match as Chelsea lost it in front of their home supporters. Had it been Chelsea’s victories in that game, the fans wouldn’t have reacted the same today as they reacted on that night. However, he admitted that Chelsea should have been awarded at least one penalty that night.

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Tom Henning Ovrebo in an interview told, “I’m sure the end of the match would have been much easier for us as a refereeing team if that [Iniesta] goal had not been scored.” 

“I don’t think the Chelsea supporters are correct when they claim four of five penalties, but I think everybody that knows football and the laws of the game knows there should have been a penalty given,” he added.

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Chelsea v Barcelona in the 2009 Champions League semi-final: A quick throwback

On May 6, 2009, Chelsea hosted Barcelona in the semifinal second leg clash at the Stamford Bridge as the aggregate score was level on term with 0-0 in the first leg. The match was to be the deciding game and Michael Essien scored the opener to give the hosts the lead with a spectacular left-footed volley.

However, Andres Iniesta’s goal helped Barcelona win the game in the away goal rule as Chelsea hunt another goal to progress to the final but failed to do so. With so many appeals from the Chelsea side, the referee became the most hated person by the football fans at the Stamford Bridge. 

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