Little football, little fair-play

Hostility

The players' attitude wasn't the best. I usually say that if the game gets problematic it is because of the referee, and of course Michel had something to do with the moments where he lost control. But it's fair to say that some of these players - considered the best and best paid of the world - did a lot in order to complicate the referee's job. They complained about the calls, they argued among themselves, and they also exaggerated fouls and did some diving. Except during small parts of the final, they seemed more interested in fighting than playing. That´s why the final between Manchester and Chelsea, two huge teams, was (at least to me) disappointing.

Referee answer

Now, what did Michel do with all this? He looked, as usual, very composed, stood most of the time in the correct location of the field. But he seemed to be trying to keep things under control without booking very much, which is against his own style, considering a game with a lot of frictions like this one. Michel is not Fröjdfeldt, he's Michel. So he should have stayed himself during the hole match. If so, he surely would have shown a direct red to Carvalho at the end of the 1st half, after he violently fouled on one of Ronaldo's ankles. Michel would also have shown at least two or three more yellow cards.
He could have conceded a penalty to Chelsea when in the 76th minute, Ferdinand pushed Malouda inside the Man. Utd area. He was correct when he showed the red to Drogba, but the whole skirmish should have been prevented. Michel's calls were OK 60-70% of the time, which is not bad but also not his best level.

Assistants?

One of Michel problems is to be "helped" by Roman Slysko and Martin Balko. They are sure of their "assistant referee" position, so they flag very often. During the final, Like Michel, they made mistakes. But not big ones.

The game

This was not the football game we were expecting to see. Only during some moments we could see good play and big emotions. Manchester played a better 1st half and deserved to end the period up front, but Chelsea scored and leveled. The 2nd part Chelsea played more consistently. With the match tied, penalties gave the 3rd European Crown to Manchester. Abramovich and all Chelsea will have to wait, at least, one more year to write "Champions League Winner" in Stamford Bridge.