Xherdan Shaqiri attracted attention last weekend with his criticism of the Swiss referees. Alex Frei can understand his former team-mate and accuses the referees of having airs and graces.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- After the controversial red card against Basel's Bénie Traoré, Xherdan Shaqiri was annoyed with the Swiss referees in an interview with blue Sport.
- Alex Frei can understand Shaqiri. "The referees often take themselves too seriously," says the blue Sport expert.
- blue referee expert Bruno Grossen does not see a general refereeing problem in the Super League. But there is still plenty of room for improvement.
Several controversial decisions in the Super League last weekend provided plenty to talk about - and a red head for Xherdan Shaqiri. "We have to think about whether we have the best referees," said the FCB star after the 1:1 draw against St. Gallen.
Alex Frei agrees with Shaqiri, at least in part. The referees in Switzerland need to develop further, says the blue Sport expert. "Referees are also allowed to make mistakes, but it becomes problematic if the VAR doesn't recognize the mistake either."
Switzerland already has one or two good referees. "But there are also referees who sometimes give me the feeling that the spectators come to the stadium because of them. That's not the case," said Frei clearly. "A referee is good if people don't talk about him after the game. Referees often take themselves too seriously."
"Shut the fuck up!"
Discussions at eye level, the occasional snappy remark to a player or coach during a match - Frei misses that in the Super League. "As a player, I was also someone who was always grumbling at the referee," he recalls:
And continues: "But in the Bundesliga, there was one (Manuel) Gräfe who then came to me and said: 'Alex, shut the fuck up! Score your goals and leave me alone! I laughed because I thought that was cool. I was then quiet again for a while."
There's no such thing nowadays. In Frei's view, referees are too quick to show yellow cards instead of seeking dialog and understanding the other player's point of view.
Lack of professionalism?
Do Swiss referees have airs and graces? blue refereeing expert Bruno Grossen disagrees with Frei: "I wouldn't say that. Last weekend was bad, but we don't have a general refereeing problem. With Sandro Schärer and Urs Schnyder, we have two referees who referee in the Champions League."
Nevertheless, Grossen demands top performance from the referees. "There is a lack of professionalism. There shouldn't be so many mistakes," he says. "Referees are top athletes, just like footballers. 80 or 90 percent is not enough. They have to be more precise, remain self-critical and give it their all right to the end."
At least no major new refereeing discussions will be sparked on Saturday evening. There was also praise from Grossen and Frei: "The referees were very good today."
