I got a very interesting game: CSKA - Spartak Nalchik. For a long time I did not judge such. Spartacists especially liked: a balanced, competent team. CSKA was hard to deal with.
Nevertheless, it was difficult to judge in this round. Uncomfortable - after the news of the resignation of Nikolai Levnikov and my two colleagues - Alexei Tyumin and Pavel Kulalaev. Constantly sitting in the mind: what if I'm wrong? Although, why would there be excitement - did we caress our heads before? Not. It just unexpectedly somehow all happened. I speak of myself; maybe someone knew something in advance ...
Very nervous. Many referee scandals happened at the end of the first round. Sometimes justified, often far-fetched. Nevertheless, it seemed to me that Levnikov would not be removed. I wish Sergey Zuev success in his new position, successful and fruitful work, but I believe that Levnikov’s departure is a loss for the College of Football Referees. I don’t understand what caused such a flurry of criticism of him. I only know that he could not put his head to all the judges.
And the removal from the work of Tyumin and Kulalaev, and the suspension for life, as the management hinted at, is just a stone age. There is no other name. Of course, the one who pays the one orders the music. And if someone, including the president of the Russian Football Union, does not want to see Tyumin, Kulalaev, or, for example, Yegorov, on the lists of judges, then that is how it should be. But, in my opinion, to treat people in this way with people about whom it is only known that they made mistakes, but no one has proved that these errors are intentional, you can’t deal with people in this way. They spent 10-15 years to make a judicial career, and suddenly ended it as a go-ahead ...
I do not know if there is biased refereeing in the Russian championship. I think no. I will not tell you if club leaders put pressure on the judges - let this remain our internal affair. But I know that not a single coach or president of a losing team will ever say that they lost because of their own mistakes. Due to the fact that their player took his foot off at the wrong time, or because the defender played competently. No, any defeat is only because it is not a victory because the judge made a mistake. Our, Russian, judge. So give us a foreigner, trainers say. There are already few Russian players left, let the judges be foreign now ...
In the Saturday match, which I served, a lot of things happened to hear from the leaders of the clubs. During a break. That's right, they told me, they’re cleaning you up, you’re looking for a replacement abroad - you don’t know how to work. The head coach of Spartak Nalchik Yuri Krasnozhan also expressed dissatisfaction with me. In hot pursuit.
I wonder: when they all watched this game again, did they change their minds? Those fouls that, as it seemed to someone, were not, in fact, after all, weren't they? And every time I was from the episode in three or four meters, right? And those players who violated the rules, they did not have any questions for me. The others had it, but the violators didn’t - I wonder why?
At our place, President Mutko made a strong-willed decision to remove the two judges, let him take one more thing: to stop commenting on the work of the arbitrators. At least in hot pursuit.
Igor Egorov, football referee