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John Obi Mikel Recalls 'Crazy' Chelsea Players Losing It After Infamous Barcelona Defeat

John Obi Mikel Recalls 'Crazy' Chelsea Players Losing It After Infamous Barcelona Defeat

Chelsea players were furious with referee Tom Henning Ovrebo.

Daniel Marland

Daniel Marland

Former Chelsea star John Obi Mikel has discussed the 'chaos' of Chelsea's controversial Champions League exit at the hands of Barcelona in 2009.

The Blues had drawn 0-0 at the Nou Camp and knew victory on home soil would take them into the final.

A Michael Essien goal put them ahead, but they'd end up having four different penalty appeals turned down.

Andres Iniesta scored an equaliser in stoppage time and it saw the game end 1-1 with Barcelona advancing on away goals.

In a moment that has now gone down in football history, Didier Drogba told TV cameras the result and refereeing was a 'f***ing disgrace'.

Mikel recalled to The Athletic: "It was chaos in the tunnel and the dressing room afterwards.

"Bottles, things flying everywhere. Tables were being smashed. Everyone was shouting and screaming.

"Mind you, one could say that was normal after that Chelsea team lost games!

"I don't know about now but losing back then was definitely not acceptable at all...but that was a really crazy night.

"Drogba lost it on the pitch and then it just carried on from there."

Flaurent Malouda and Drogba had two penalty shouts in the first half and two handballs in the second were overlooked.

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PA
Image
PA

One of those came after Iniesta's equaliser and in the game's dying embers.

Drogba's reaction earned him a five-match ban from UEFA while Jose Bosingwa was given three games.

Michael Ballack and captain John Terry could be seen shouting at referee Tom Henning Ovrebo on the pitch but weren't hit with sanctions.

Ovrebo admitted in 2018 that he made a number of mistakes in the game - but sadly revealed he still receives death threats over it.

"I still get a few death threats, but they go straight into the garbage box. I don't take them seriously, although sometimes I wonder about the people who send them," Ovrebo told The Times per ESPN.

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PA

"Just yesterday I got an email from a Chelsea fan saying he wanted to kill me and my family.

"Everyone who knows the laws of the game knows I should have done things differently, but that's the life of a referee.

"In a strange way, I was actually satisfied with the way we all managed to keep calm in a tense situation."

He added: "On the pitch I did my best. I shouldn't have to apologise as mistakes are part of the game."

Featured Image Credit: UEFA

Topics: Chelsea, Football, Barcelona, Champions League