Chapter 289: Chapter 288: The Judge as Director
How does he have the nerve to consistently avoid passing me threatening balls?
On-field conflicts at Viana had unknowingly shifted from Deng Kai to Ronaldo.
Other players also performed in these three matches, with Matthaus making passes and scoring a goal, while Pinto and Feng Te each racked up an assist.
The ninth and tenth rounds, with one loss and one draw, allowed Porto to catch up to Sporting Lisbon’s points.
Sporting Lisbon led the standings with a goal difference advantage, but the goal difference between the two teams was now negligible.
With Jia De’er and Deco pairing up, Porto was currently unstoppable, slaughtering any team in their path!
November 19, the third round of the UEFA Europa League group stage.
The first leg of the contest between Sporting Lisbon and Rosenborg was about to kick off.
In the first two rounds, Rosenborg had lost to Anderlecht.
But those who watched the matches knew they didn’t lose by much; they definitely had strength.
They were certainly much stronger than the consensus weakest in the group, Gaziantepspor.
So it wouldn’t be easy for Sporting Lisbon to defeat them.
Especially since they had just experienced some fluctuations in the league.
Rosenborg could just ride the wave and take them out!
As long as they defeated Sporting Lisbon, they would still have a chance to advance from the group stage.
However, from the start, this match had an unusual air about it.
In the seventh minute, when Quaresma was taken down on the wing, the referee didn’t blow the whistle.
Rosenborg then launched a dangerous attack, which Schmeichel brilliantly saved just before the goal.
In the 13th minute, Ibrahimovic was brought down near the edge of the penalty area by a approaching central defender from behind, and although the entire Sporting Lisbon team protested, the referee turned a deaf ear.
"Fuck! If he’s not using his eyes he might as well donate them!" Maxa cursed angrily on the sidelines.
The fourth official glanced at Maxa, who immediately shrank back to the coaches and substitutes’ bench and asked Trigella beside him, "Is this a fixed match? Is it a bought referee?"
Trigella shook his head, "We can’t be sure just yet."
Maxa: "The manipulation is so obvious and we still can’t be sure?"
Trigella replied, "Indeed, the signs of manipulation are strong, but all matches are manipulated. The director is always there on the field; it’s just that the ordinary fans never see the manipulator."
Maxa: "Are you saying, the head coach? Then what is this if not a bought referee?"
Trigella replied, "It depends on the other side’s intentions. Absolute fairness doesn’t exist. Apart from making a ton of money, UEFA’s goal is also to ensure the excitement level of matches, to make the script for each year’s competition full of tension."
"Rosenborg has lost two rounds, and we’ve won two. If this round ends with us winning and them losing again, the situation for this group would become too clear too soon."
"If Anderlecht next door merely draws, the qualifiers will be decided in the next round. The final two rounds would then become meaningless. The majority of fans won’t pay for such meaningless matches."
"UEFA has to ensure the excitement of the matches, and if possible, they hope every game’s outcome can be decided only in the last round. This would increase both the revenue and the impact of the games by several notches."
"So far, the main referee has been very lenient with foul calls, which favors the defensively oriented Rosenborg. But if Rosenborg were to take the lead, the threshold for his foul calls would drastically tighten, and he’d blow the whistle for just about any fall."
"You think he’s a biased referee, his standards have always been consistent for both teams. You think he’s not, and yet the obvious manipulation can’t possibly escape the notice of any savvy fan."
Maxa ground his teeth: "They’re too brazen!"
On the contrary, Trigella was quite optimistic: "That’s about right, but it’s not entirely a bad thing. Underdogs need a nurturing environment, dark horses need to be cultivated, and miracles come with conditions."
"If you consider the major leagues, the Europa League, the Champions League, the Euros, the World Cup as absolutely fair, sacred, untouchable, and inviolate theaters of war. Then this kind of attempt to manipulate matches to make the events more exciting is simply unforgivable."
"But if you view it as a thoughtfully planned, scripted show or TV drama, which also allows some space for the actors to improvise, you might feel quite differently about it."
"Many people claim to be the first kind, but their wallets and their attention to the games honestly reflect that they actually prefer the second kind."
"With our current strength, and Deng Kai’s insight and ability to adjust on the field, as long as the officials maintain consistency in their enforcement for both teams, our probability of advancing from this group stage is nearly one hundred percent. The only difference would be whether it’s one round earlier or later."
"But once we enter the knockout stages, we’ll be facing strong teams from the top five leagues, those placed fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and teams at the Champions League level."
"At that time, we’ll be Rosenborg of the present."
Maxa’s expression changed from cloudy to clear, and without the demeanor of a strong team, he exclaimed, "You mean, is UEFA going to help us win then?"
Trigella rubbed his forehead.
Is this it?
The future Cruyff and GAF Ferguson of Portuguese coaching?
With such narrow-mindedness?
Waiting for the main referee to win you the game?
Trigella shook his head: "In the early stages, they will restrict the attacks of the strong teams, but no matter whether we seize that period or not, in the final twenty minutes, they will unleash the strong teams."
"If the strong team wins the game, it will be a close shave, and even in defeat, we can hold our heads high."
"If the strong team fails to seize the opportunity, that’s our successful upset, the lion woke up too late."
"During this period, it’s also possible to level the score appropriately with penalties, or give the other team a glimmer of hope, and so on."
"The difference between a top referee and an ordinary one lies in the fact that the latter just makes calls, while the former directs a game that cannot afford a retake."
"Any top referee could be nominated for an Oscar for Best Director. Those who have allowed retakes have ended up labeled as biased, similar to directors in the film industry who have big reputations but many flops."
"But no matter which type you are, people will come to you to direct; because even as a director of flops, at least you know what your real task is. Capital finds such people more reliable than idealistic rookie directors."
Because the fourth official had started to pay attention, Trigella substituted ’director’ for ’main referee’ more often in his speech without distorting the message.
But it was clear that Maxa didn’t quite understand.
He’s just a janitor; he’s already tired enough pushing his broom, let alone finding time to watch movies.
And if he did watch, those movie directors would probably just be shouting, "That’s the position... hold it... right, don’t move yet... expression, make the expression a bit more intense..."
