Nottingham Forest vs Midtjylland ref watch: Three decisions Willy Delajod got wrong
Ange Postecoglou suffered yet more frustration at the City Ground in a 3-2 Europa League defeat against Midtjylland.
Postecoglou is already under pressure at Forest after a poor start to his tenure, with the Reds going without a win in six matches across all competitions, including a 1-0 defeat to Sunderland.
Nuno Espirito Santo was relieved of his duties due to disagreements over summer transfers, and the change in leadership in the dugout appears to have backfired extremely for Evangelos Marinakis.
Midtjylland took advantage of a major weakness, with Dan Ndoye‘s strike sandwiched between goals from Ousmane Diao and Mads Bech. Valdemar Byskov added a third, so Chris Wood‘s late penalty was nothing more than a consolation goal.
Referee Willy Delajod made a few questionable decisions throughout the 90 minutes, however, and they may have played an important role in the result at the City Ground on Thursday, 2 October.
Morato goes into the referee’s notebook almost instantly
After just one minute on the clock, one of Forest’s centre-backs had been cautioned, and all because he had stepped backwards onto his opposition’s foot.
With just a few seconds gone, Delajod could have been far more lenient, but because of his actions, Morato had to be so much more careful while walking a tightrope for the rest of the game.
Murillo was forced off with an injury during the first half, replaced by Nicolo Savona, so it was even more of an important decision than first felt, with very few capable options available on the bench.
Willy Delajod extremely inconsistent in the early stages
Only a few minutes after Morato’s yellow card, Elliot Anderson found himself on the deck following a challenge from Denil Castillo, who made his feelings known about the free-kick going against him.
After shouting in Anderson’s ear, fans expected the midfielder to be sanctioned, especially after being called over by the referee, but he kept his cards in his pocket, surprisingly.
If Morato had avoided an early punishment at the City Ground, supporters might not have been so upset by the decision, but loud groans were heard around the stadium due to the inconsistency.
Nottingham Forest vs Midtjylland not allowed to flow
One of the biggest flaws in the referee’s performance was his inability to let the game flow, which is ultimately one of the reasons that the Reds failed to get going at the City Ground.
A total of 29 fouls were awarded between the two teams, and while the yellow cards were stacking up for free-kicks, it would have been just as easy to play advantage before coming back to sanction.
It is extremely frustrating for supporters to see referees stop the players from getting into a groove while in possession, letting them probe continuously before finally breaking down the defence.