In the match between Lucerne and Winterthur, referee Johannes von Mandach wrongly decides to show a red card after VAR intervention. Referee boss Wermelinger comments to blue Sport.
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- A wrongly shown red card against Tobias Schättin caused emotions to run high in the Winterthur camp.
- Coach Uli Forte chose harsh words in an interview with blue Sport. For him, the sending off of referee Johannes von Mandach was a "payback" after he had recently publicly criticized the referees. Von Mandach apologized after the game for his incorrect assessment of the scene.
- Referee boss Dani Wermelinger understands Winterthur's frustration and takes the criticism as an incentive for himself and the team.
After the unjust red card against Winterthur player Tobias Schättin, for which referee Johannes von Mandach subsequently apologized, FCW coach Uli Forte gave free rein to his anger in an interview with blue Sport.
The 50-year-old senses a conspiracy against his team and speaks of a "payback". Forte recently told the Swiss Football League: "If the league wants us out of the Super League, then they simply have to say so!" Following his angry statements, the league opened disciplinary proceedings against Forte on Monday. So there is a lot of fuss about the wrong decision.
Operational planning was still adjusted
"I can understand the displeasure of any club that has been disadvantaged by a wrong decision from us," says Dani Wermelinger, the man responsible for the top referees.
The Aargau native explains why the SFL has now initiated proceedings against Forte - and not earlier - with a different starting position: "In the first interview, they were very neutral, not related to one person. They simply criticized individual decisions."
In his incendiary speech, Forte also complained that the VAR in question had already caused the club to make wrong decisions in the recent past. "We are very sensitive when it comes to deployment planning," said Wermelinger. With regard to the Lucerne-Winterthur match, personnel changes were made.
"We had the feeling it would be better if we made a change. It always happens that things don't work out in the end. It's like a coach sending a team out onto the pitch. Sometimes you have more success, sometimes less," says Wermelinger.
English weeks very demanding
Wermelinger takes the criticism as an incentive: "We have all dealt with the cases very transparently and honestly with the people. It's up to each and every one of us, especially the management, to take a step forward, to focus on the pitch, to focus in Volketswil (location of the VAR - editor's note) and to make the right decisions on the pitch and in Volketswil."
Is the incident an argument for professionalizing the Swiss refereeing system? "Yes, of course. We had an English week. And English weeks are always very demanding for all our referees and assistants. When you have two or three assignments in one week, it's naturally extremely demanding," says Wermelinger.
"But I don't want to put the mistakes down to that alone," says the 53-year-old. "In the end, we didn't look good in two or three scenes, and we're not happy with the management. And now we're getting up - it's like a team - we're coming back," emphasizes Wermelinger.
