In the aftermath of Manchester City's controversial defeat to Barcelona on Tuesday night, the media have had their say on the decision that swung things in the visitor's favour. Although the blues deserved to lose and see out the game with ten men, many have questioned whether Martin Demichelis's last ditch tackle on Lionel Messi really warranted a penalty.
According to the IBTimes, City boss Manuel Pellegrini is likely to face a lengthy ban after questioning the impartiality of referee Jonas Eriksson. The Chilean reacted in unfamiliar fashion to the 2-0 loss, and launched a scathing attack on the Swede in his post-match press conference.
(Outraged: Manuel Pellegrini reacted furiously to Jonas Eriksson's refereeing on Tuesday night)
"The referee decided the game. He was on Barcelona's side from the beginning until the end," said Pellegrini.
"Before the penalty, which was outside the area, there was a foul on Jesus Navas. He didn't control any of the game.
"I think it was not a good idea to put a referee from Sweden in charge of such an important match, and a referee who made an important mistake against Barcelona in a previous match. Today he arranged it.
"The more important mistake is the foul against Navas, and secondly the penalty.
"Contact was outside the box - that is the foul, you cannot continue the foul. The first foul is outside the box. Before the penalty Barcelona did not have chances and we were preparing the way to score."
The manager's outburst is unlikely to be ignored by UEFA.
In other news, Daily Mail columnists Martin Keown and Graham Poll have also had their say on the tie.
Keown believes Manuel Pellegrini sent out a message of respect to Barcelona by playing both Aleksandar Kolarov and Gaël Clichy down the left-hand side of the pitch. However, the former Arsenal defender also praised the blues and said ''with Dani Alves and Alexis Sanchez playing down that side, he wanted to make sure they stifled that threat and, until the last minute when Barca scored as City chased the game, they did well.''
(The blues gave a spirited performance, but it wasn't enough against an excellent Barcelona side)
Former Premier League referee Poll added that 'Barcelona's penalty was rightly awarded' and explained why in a detailed analysis of Demichelis's challenge.
“There was a question over the exact position of the foul. I was taught that experienced defenders make last ditch tackles knowing they are just outside the area.
“However, in my opinion contact continued until at least the line marking the penalty area and further, meaning awarding a penalty was a correct decision.
“If there is doubt then a referee should give it outside. You can’t guess a penalty. Eriksson must have been sure and if you look at the foul from the assistant referee’s position, he will have seen contact had occurred inside.”
