Chapter 480: Chapter 480

At halftime, boos echoed through Maine Road as Richard folded his arms, waiting for the referees to decide on yet another foul by a Wimbledon player against Manchester City.

He saw O’Neill approach the main referee, trying to argue, but the official wouldn’t budge. No matter how frustrated O’Neill became, he marched straight ahead, ball in hand, without so much as a glance. Richard felt a fire brewing inside him.

After the first half ended, Richard headed toward the locker room. He didn’t enter — he just stood silently, listening as O’Neill focused on boosting the players’ morale, reminding them not to let the referee’s calls disrupt their concentration.

Tactically, there was little to adjust. City had dominated the first half, pressing relentlessly. Had it not been for a disallowed goal, they would already be leading.

As the second half began, Richard returned to the director’s box, cold-faced, hands in pockets. Anyone could see he was furious — no one dared disturb him.

Then, Zambrotta fouled Wimbledon’s Robbie Earle. The referee blew the whistle immediately and issued a yellow card.

"The refereeing today has been far too lenient, clearly favoring Wimbledon. City had a goal disallowed, and now we’re forced to watch sloppy officiating. Uriah Rennie is officiating his first Premier League match — maybe he’s nervous, maybe he wants to let the game flow, but he’s failing spectacularly. Manchester City is a title contender. The FA should ensure such matches are handled by experienced referees."

Even commentators Andy Gray and Martin Tyler struggled to defend Uriah, whose inexperience was glaring.

City’s players hesitated. Wimbledon’s rough tactics were notorious; even Nakata, usually fearless, avoided direct challenges, passing whenever he could. Only Gattuso seemed unaffected. Updates are released by novęlfire.net

City responded by emphasizing aerial attacks, playing crosses and long balls from deep.

In the 63rd minute, Zambrotta delivered a perfect cross from the left. Trezeguet leapt for a header, only to be shoved to the ground by a Wimbledon defender. The crowd erupted:

Uriah crossed his arms, signaling no foul. Richard couldn’t help but smile mockingly. Protesting was useless, but Mourinho disagreed. He stormed toward the fourth official, raising a finger at the opposing players.

"The way you refereed today is rubbish! Rubbish! You don’t deserve to wear that uniform!"

The main referee, irked, halted the match and brandished a red card at Mourinho. O’Neill intervened, holding the angry coach back. Mourinho, undeterred, clapped mockingly at the officiating crew as the fans cheered him on. Even Uriah hesitated — this was Maine Road, City’s home, after all.

When play resumed, Uriah booked a few Wimbledon players, but the damage was done. Time-wasting, fouls, and stoppages turned the second half into chaos, leaving City desperate for set-piece opportunities.

In the final minutes, O’Neill instructed Zambrotta to push forward. But Wimbledon’s defensive wall held firm, fouling and slowing the game at every opportunity. Four minutes of stoppage time were announced — far too little given the interruptions.

Then, in the dying moments, Deco and Eto’o wove past two defenders. Eto’o nudged the ball into the area for Trezeguet, who stayed onside and readied himself for the finish. Just as he was about to strike, the referee blew his whistle.

Trezeguet ignored it.

The ball hit the net and Neil Sullivan, Wimbledon’s goalkeeper, froze. If that ball had hit his face... holy moly!

Uriah, however, pointed outside the box, awarding a free kick to City.

Cannavaro leapt to protest, "This should count! The playing advantage, we scored!"

According to the Laws of the Game, if a team is fouled but still retains a promising attack, the referee can choose not to blow the whistle immediately. This is called "playing the advantage". The idea is to allow the attacking team to continue their attack instead of stopping play.

Uriah remained stern, "But I blew the whistle first."

At the end of the day, it is is a judgment call. The referee must assess whether the advantage is significant — if the attacking team is clearly hindered, the whistle can be blown immediately.

Gattuso’s calm didn’t last long. After yet another lenient call in favor of Wimbledon, his temper snapped. His eyes blazed with fury as he stormed toward Uriah Rennie, fists clenched.

"Ma che cazzo fai?! Non puoi continuare a farla franca così! Vaffanculo!"

No one knew exactly what Gattuso had said, but there was no doubt — it was clearly a string of furious curses.

Manchester City’s players quickly surrounded Uriah, who, feeling under this "attack," brandished three yellow cards and one red card, sending Gattuso off for foul language.

O’Neill remained expressionless on the sidelines. Not Mourinho, though. He had already stormed onto the pitch, forcing Willie McStay, Terry Gennoe, and Antonio Pintus to pull him back.

Once the game resumed, Nakata’s free kick sailed over the bar just as Uriah blew the final whistle, signaling the end of the match. This bewildered every City player who had hoped to capitalize on a rebound.

Lampard rushed toward Uriah, incredulous. "Four minutes of stoppage time! Their foul was two minutes in — there should be at least two minutes left!"

Uriah ignored the uproar from the players and crowd. Calmly, he picked up the ball and gestured for his fellow officials to leave the field together.

Richard turned and headed into the players’ tunnel.

Maine Road erupted with boos, and a bizarre scene unfolded.

Three people were holding Mourinho, whose face had turned crimson, veins bulging — it looked like he was about to punch someone.

"Jose, calm down," said Genoe, City’s goalkeeping coach.

"Yes, yes, I know," Mourinho nodded, his voice deceptively calm. "I am calm now. You can let me go."

The three staffers exchanged skeptical glances. He sounded calm though. However not long after, the façade shattered.

Mourinho spun around like a coiled spring and sprinted from the City bench straight onto the pitch, eyes locked on the referee.

The City staff nearby froze. They knew Mourinho had a short temper, but never imagined he would go this far.

They rushed forward to stop him. Three hands gripped him, tugging at his arms, but he twisted free, flinging his jacket aside, and surged ahead like a man possessed.

Just three meters from Uriah Rennie, the referee’s calm expression betrayed nothing of the storm heading his way. The staffers clung to Mourinho desperately, but even with three people restraining him, he pushed forward, shouting a relentless torrent of rage.

"You’re fixing it for them! Dirty refs, the lot of you. Cross me and you’ll wish you hadn’t. You should be ashamed!"

The roar of the crowd matched his fury, amplifying the chaos. Security personnel finally joined the fray, and together with the City staff, they managed to subdue Mourinho — though not before he continued glaring daggers at the officials as they retreated.

As the refereeing crew finally reached the players’ tunnel, security formed a tight perimeter to prevent enraged fans from rushing in. Despite the cordon, lighters, coins, and random debris rained down from the stands, narrowly missing the officials.

Eventually, the referees exited the pitch, heads down, retreating into the tunnel amid the chaos of Maine Road, leaving a stunned crowd, a seething manager, and a team still reeling from the madness on the field.

It seemed the FA and their referees had forgotten just how barbaric English fans could be when their favorite team was involved.

Thankfully, before things could spiral out of control, Richard had already taken charge. First, he called in Carl Morran from the Blazing Squad to organize the fans. Next, Manchester City’s security and local police moved into position. And finally, Richard himself stepped onto the pitch, projecting calm authority as he worked to soothe the crowd.

The memory of the 1989 Manchester derby at Maine Road came to mind. Back then, supporters had fought in the stands, hurled objects, and spilled onto restricted areas. The chaos had escalated so much that the referee had to halt the match for eight minutes just to restore order and protect the players and officials.

Thankfully, those days of standing terraces were long gone. Modern safety measures ensured that today, any potential chaos could be controlled swiftly.

Yet in this moment, the tension felt both rare and justified. Manchester City had been treated unfairly, and the fans were responding as anyone would when faced with injustice. The match had ended in a 0‑0 draw against Wimbledon, and everyone hoped that today’s drama wouldn’t affect the team’s future fixtures.

After the game, reporters flooded the Maine Road press conference room, buzzing with excitement. Outside, Richard lingered, still attentive.

Inside, O’Neill spent a long time calming his players in the locker room. Richard nodded with this approached. Understanding that today’s situation did not require anger or grand gestures. The team needed to process the events calmly, to keep their judgment clear despite the chaos they had just endured.

After spending time calming the players, O’Neill finally emerged from the locker room, expecting to find the pitch quiet and the post-match chaos winding down. He was surprised, however, to see Richard already waiting for him, leaning casually against the railing, eyes sharp and assessing.

"Let’s talk first," Richard said, his tone calm but carrying an unmistakable weight.