De Jong has some sympathy for Webb

12 July 2010 18:09
Holland midfielder Nigel de Jong has admitted he was lucky not to be sent off in Sunday's World Cup final defeat to Spain.[LNB] Referee Howard Webb has been roundly criticised for not showing De Jong a red card for his woeful chest-high tackle on Xabi Alonso during the first half at Soccer City in Johannesburg.[LNB]The incident has been viewed as the height of the thuggish tactics that were employed by Holland in a bid to stop their opponents' stylish passing game.[LNB]Tackles from Mark van Bommel and Wesley Sneijder have also been highlighted, whilst of Holland's starting line-up, only Dirk Kuyt, Sneijder and goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg were not yellow-carded.[LNB]Everton's John Heitinga eventually became the fifth player to be dismissed in World Cup final history.[LNB]But De Jong accepts he is fortunate not to have preceded him.[LNB]"Yes, I was concerned it might be worse than a yellow," said the Manchester City midfielder.[LNB]"It looked worse, although to be honest I didn't see the opponent coming in from the side.[LNB]"I was really focused on the ball and I caught him on his chest.[LNB]"It was a bit curious but he gave the yellow card so for me it was a little bit of luck."[LNB]Maybe that knowledge is why De Jong was not as condemnatory about Webb's performance as some of his Dutch team-mates.[LNB]The 25-year-old claimed Webb did not have a great game. However, he has seen enough of the Rotherham official to feel he is better than one single performance suggests.[LNB]"It is easy to blame the referee," he reflected.[LNB]"There were some strange decisions and everyone, in the stadium and on TV, could see we should have had a clear corner when he gave a goal-kick to Spain. On the next attack they score. What can you do about that? He will realise what he did when he sees the replay.[LNB]"But I am not saying the biggest fault was with the referee.[LNB]"I know him from the Premier League and have never had a problem with him.[LNB]"He refereed the Champions League final at the end of the season so he has a lot of experience.[LNB]"I like the referees in the Premier League. Howard is not a bad referee. But sometimes you don't have your luckiest games. Unfortunately, in the final, he did not have his luckiest game."[LNB]And, while it came alongside a complaint, De Jong actually expressed some sympathy for the man in the middle.[LNB]As a combative, tigerish player, prone to the odd suspension or two - he missed the semi-final win over Uruguay after picking up a couple of cautions previously - De Jong feels football's law-makers have gone too far in taking the physical element out of the game.[LNB]"Nowadays the pressure on the referees is so big," he said.[LNB]"There are so many rules from FIFA telling them what to do.[LNB]"It would be easier if they could concentrate on the basics and referee the game.[LNB]"Maybe I am a little bit old school. But when you see how football used to be, there were worse fouls then and no-one even whistled.[LNB]"It is part of the game. Now FIFA come out with all those rules and the game is not exciting for the players any more.[LNB]"Let football stay as football."[LNB]De Jong certainly has no complaints at how Sunday's game unfolded, even if the 14 yellow cards and one red smashed the previous record of six yellows from the 1986 final.[LNB]"It was a final. Everyone is trying to survive," he said.[LNB]"You have to win the game no matter what. Everyone had aggression and emotion on the pitch to win because it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."[LNB]That opportunity has now passed for De Jong, who will have a short break before returning to City and the fight for a first-team place following the arrival of Yaya Toure from Barcelona.[LNB]It has been suggested Barca could ask for De Jong as part-exchange for the release of another high-profile player, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, although the former Hamburg star cannot even begin to think about domestic matters at present.[LNB]"I will have three or four weeks off and we will see when I come back," he said.[LNB]"To lose a World Cup final is hard. I am really disappointed.[LNB]"But in a couple of days I know I will be happy with our achievements."

Source: Team_Talk