“We have to blame ourselves for this loss of points. We had plenty of chances to decide the game and we have to do better.” Union player Alessio Castro-Montes and trainer Alexander Blessin made a refreshing sound after the 2-2 draw against Westerlo. For once, the players and coach did not place the responsibility on the arbitration, but on their own failure. Union had missed too many opportunities against Westerlo. Even though it conceded a penalty goal in the final phase after an overzealous VAR referee Kevin Van Damme was called to the screen.
Blessin maintained his dignified posture for half an hour. Then he reviewed the images and took a different tone. “I love VAR and am always positive, but this is not a penalty,” he said at the press conference. “This is just a joke.”
A few hours earlier, Blessin’s compatriot Florian Kohfeldt, Eupen’s trainer, had expressed equally cynical views. “I have to restrain myself when I talk about arbitration. The Belgian referees are so good.” His Bruges colleague Ronny Deila – although not disadvantaged after the 4-0 win against Eupen – supported him. “I’m not normally critical, but strange things have been happening lately.”
Referee bashing
The “strange things” Deila referred to included Ghent midfielder Julien De Sart’s disallowed goal against Anderlecht. Much can be said about that phase, but not that it was “strange”. That word insinuates that there is conscious influence on competitions.
A week earlier, AA Gent coach Hein Vanhaezebrouck had also been guilty of insinuations. Publicly attacking or “bashing” referees has become a national sport. The weekly criticism undermines the self-confidence of the force. Referees feel that a climate is created in which every mistake is used to undermine their authority.
The publication of the referee reports in the Nieuwsblad caused even more unrest last weekend. The football association kept that information secret, “to maintain serenity”. Even now that the figures are on the street, the association remains silent. Some referees welcome its publication because it makes them look better than their colleagues. Others feel exposed. Almost everyone points to French referee boss Bertrand Layec as responsible for the current malaise.
Dure consultants
To understand the current arbitration crisis, we have to go back to October 10, 2018, and the previous arbitration crisis. Even though no evidence was provided that Sébastien Delferière and Bart Vertenten were guilty of match fixing, their close ties with player agent Dejan Veljkovic made their further functioning impossible. The Belgian association resorted to foreign experts to once again build a “Chinese wall” between the referees and the clubs.
Bertrand Layec and the British David Elleray worked as expensive consultants and were given high-profile positions. The “VAR replay center” was given a central place in the association building. The operating budget increased, but the clubs found that referees continued to make mistakes. The “Chinese Wall” was branded by the clubs as an “ivory tower”.
Through the detour of the Pro League, clubs such as AA Gent increased the pressure on the football association. Elleray left and Layec was put on watch. Now that the arbitration is going through tough times, the new CEO Piet Vandendriessche is under pressure to let Layec go immediately.
Layec can certainly be credited with being self-willed. He made appointments autonomously and took little account of figures or consultation. That approach first gave him power but later made him vulnerable.
But sending the Frenchman away does not solve the problems. To restore trust, everyone must take responsibility.
The football association can return to a central referee committee, which makes supported decisions. Specialization between field referees and VAR referees seems to be a necessary step. Permanent teams can be used, just as is done with referees and assistants.
Other proposals, such as foreign refs, are less beneficial. The best foreign referees will always prefer to work in their own country.
To improve Belgian arbitration, investments must be made in Belgian refs. By the football association, but also by the other shareholders of football. Clubs, trainers and players must accept that referees make mistakes, without looking for a diabolical plan behind it. Anyone who understands that can once again speak with respect about the man in yellow, blue or black. It is the only way to solve the refereeing problem that clubs have brought upon themselves.
In ‘Between’ the lines, Bart Lagae delves into the sports news of the weekend.
