Villas-Boas fuming after ´dubious´ penalty calls

Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas slammed referee Howard Webb after watching his side blow a three goal lead against Manchester United.

United comeback was kick-started by two penalties awarded by Webb, with Wayne Rooney converting both spot kicks before Javier Hernandez netted the equaliser in the 3-3 draw at Stamford Bridge.

Villas-Boas believed Webb was compensating for decisions that went against United in the first half as he pointed to the spot twice in three minutes after Chelsea had taken a 3-0 lead.

“We expect in top games top refs, and it has not been happening for us,” Villas-Boas said.

“It didn’t happen for us at Old Trafford with two off-side goals and maybe with today’s dubious decision, which, in the end, shaped the running of the game.”

“The biggest disappointment is the way it happened. In both games they (referees) have had a direct influence on the result and today a dubious decision helped stimulate United to 3-3.”

“I don’t know if he (Webb) is compensating for something in the first half. The second one is a wrong decision. (Danny) Welbeck’s legs got caught with Ivanovic. You can’t give a penalty for that, I’m sure. I don’t know if Howard Webb has the correct angle to make that decision.”

Nevertheless, Villas-Boas paid tribute to United’s resilience in mounting a comeback from three goals behind.

“The 3-3 is almost a normal score for them,” he said. “Their players never give up. It is not the result they would have wanted, for sure, but the draw, coming back from 3-0, is important.”

Not surprisingly, Sir Alex Ferguson had no qualms about the penalties awarded to Manchester United, and said he thought his side had been the better team.

“The two penalties in the second half were justified. I think we could have had four in the game,” Ferguson told Sky Sports.

“It’s two points dropped. We played so well, apart from the 10 minutes straight after halftime where we got off to a terrible start and lost two goals in five minutes.

“But, it’s not easy to come back from two goals down. That is a massive effort from our players. I thought we were the far better team.”

“It was a massive effort from the team, and a great game. For a neutral watching that game it was fantastic.”