Manuel Pellegrini blast Swedish Referee after Manchester City vs Barcelona Match (Full Press Transcript)

The full transcript of Manchester City manager's press conference after the Champions League game v Barcelona

Was it a penalty and red card?

"The referee decided the game. Before the penalty, it was a foul on Navas when he was three metres from the play so he could see it. From the beginning I felt the ref was not impartial to both teams. So he decided the game. And after it was not a penalty, it was outside the box. Playing 40 minutes with one player less is difficult against Barcelona but we played well with one player less and in the last minute they scored the second goal."

Did you speak to ref?

"Just to tell him he decided the game. I was not happy because he decided the game."

Did you agonise over your team selection?

"No, I always set to play in the way we played because it is important when you have two legs against Barcelona not to concede a goal at home. That is why it was a very close game, a very balanced game, Barcelona did not have any chances until the penalty against Demichelis. After trying to score with one player less was very difficult but we had two or three options to do it. One was with Dzeko but the referee said it was a foul."

Did the referee favour Barça?

"He did not have any control of the game. He favoured Barcelona from the beginning to the end. I think it was not a good idea to put a referee from Sweden in charge and a referee who made a mistake against Barcelona in the group stages."

Did you think the Demichelis foul should have been a free kick outside the box?

"The contact was outside the box, that was the contact. You cannot continue the foul, the first foul was outside the box. But more important we were building up, the important mistake is the foul against Navas, the second mistake was the penalty. But it was from the beginning. Barcelona did not have chances before the goal. It was a pity because that important action decided the game."

What did you think of having a Swedish ref?

"There is more important football in Europe than in Sweden. A big game with two important teams, that kind of game needs a referee with more experience. This referee whistled the Barcelona-Milan game in the group and he made an important error against Barcelona. Today he remedied it."

First half, did you do what you wanted?

"Yes, Barça had a lot of the ball but they had it where we wanted. They were not near our area so they did create our area. The referee from the beginning did not give a good impression. There was a penalty, we had one player less but the team played with courage."

Was the referee compensating for his mistake against Barça in the Milan match?

"Yes"
Download unlimited e-books in various disciplines for FREE
Get Breaking News on BBM - add our PIN - 232FC0E9
Follow on Twitter to receive updates every hour
Don't miss the next news item - LIKE our Facebook page