The second leg of the Champions League semi-final between Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain was one of the more heated fixtures from the season. The main reason behind it being the chaos that surrounded PSG players and their interactions with the referee on the day, Bjorn Kuipers.
Ander Herrera was particularly livid on the pitch and was booked by the referee during the match.
“We were better for 70 minutes, we had the ball, we can go out with our heads high,” he said after the match.
“We are sad, but we know that it is not easy to be a finalist one year and then to be among the four best the next,” he continued.
“At one point he said ‘screw you’ and we can’t accept that.”
Marco Verratti also complained about receiving insults from the referee.
“We are disappointed, but I think that until [Angel] Di María’s sending off, we were in the game,” he said.
Angel Di Maria was sent off for stepping on Fernandinho’s foot close to the touchline, once the ball had gone out. The challenge was rather stupid, and was one of the main reasons behind the ire of the PSG players.
“Against opponents like this it is difficult to control all the details,” the Italian added.
PSG midfielder Leandro Paredes was also told to ‘f*ck off’ by Kuipers, which, as Verratti pointed out, would have gotten players banned for at least 10 games for disrespectful behaviour.
Whether or not the allegations are actually true is something that remains to be seen, but considering UEFA’s attitude with referees as of late, an investigation could be warranted into the issue.
