Roberto De Zerbi has hit out at ’80 per cent of English referees’ after a frustrating afternoon saw his Brighton side held 1-1 by Sheffield United.
The Seagulls have not won any of their last six matches and threw away a lead at home against the Blades to make it three draws on the spin.
Brighton’s Mahmoud Dahoud was shown a straight red card in the second half for a rash challenge on Ben Osborn when his side were leading, and although De Zerbi accepts the decision was correct, he slammed officials in the Premier League.
‘I am honest and clear, I don’t like 80 per cent of English referees,’ said De Zerbi. ‘It’s not a new thing, I don’t like them.’
Explaining his opinion, he said: ‘The behaviour, I don’t like their behaviour on the pitch.
‘If I see the new rules it’s a red card, clear. But I was a player and the dynamic of the situation wasn’t a red card, but we have to accept. Dahoud knows the mistake.’
It’s not just the behaviour of the referees on the pitch that is bothering the Italian, but he also questioned VAR and if it can be relied on.
‘England is the only country where, when there is VAR, you are not sure the decision is right,’ he said. ‘In other countries you have to be sure the referee is 100 per cent right. In England no, I’m not able to understand.’
While it was a disappointing afternoon for Brighton it was a good one for Sheffield United, who move to five points from 12 games.
‘Listen we’ve got to be satisfied with a point, having gone behind against a good team. Although we’re disappointed with the goal, I thought they passed the ball well and caused us problems,’ Paul Heckingbottom told Sky Sports.
‘It would have been lovely to get the three points but we can’t be greedy. It’s something to build on, we’ve had a bit of bad luck and we could have been more on points but we have to be grateful for four from the last two games.’
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