Micah Richards attempted to defend Jude Bellingham after his much-debated sending off at the weekend for allegedly telling saying ‘f*** you’ to the referee.
Bellingham, 21, was dismissed during Real Madrid’s 1-1 draw with Osasuna on Saturday after the official Juan Luis Munuera Montero adjudged he had been sworn at. The midfielder looked to defend himself by arguing he had said ‘f*** off’ in anger at his own actions.
Real appealed the decision but their pleas fell on deaf ears and Bellingham’s two-match suspension was upheld by the Spanish football federation’s disciplinary committee on Wednesday.
They said the club weren’t able to definitively prove Bellingham hadn’t directed his X-rated remark toward the referee.
‘Real Madrid, based on the images and the expert opinion sent, weren’t able to prove that he says “f*** off” instead of “f*** you”,’ the explanation read. ‘The referee report is presumed to be true and therefore the appeal fails.’
And, when discussing the incident ahead of Real Madrid’s Champions League clash against Man City – in which Bellingham played the full 90 minutes – Richards and Thierry Henry disagreed.
Micah Richards defended Jude Bellingham in the aftermath of his much-debated sending off
Bellingham was sent off for shouting ‘f*** you’ towards the referee against Osasuna
Bellingham was incensed as he walked off and was adamant that he said ‘f*** off’ at himself
Henry was firm in his backing of the officials as he criticised the midfielder for his behaviour.
‘For me it doesn’t matter,’ the French icon said. ‘You shouldn’t say that on the field. I’ve done it, we have all done it.
‘What I’m trying to say is the referee doesn’t have to accept it, we all understand how he said it, but the referee doesn’t have to accept it on the field.
‘So he took a red card… it is an insult at the end of the day. Whoever you are, you shouldn’t say that on the field. It is an insult, you shouldn’t be talking like that.’
Richards took a different view however, as he added: ‘Thierry is 100 per cent right. But I think there is a difference between f*** you and f*** off.
‘It’s like if you play a ball to me and I take a bad touch and I’m like f*** off. If I say f*** you it’s because it was a bad pass, that’s personal to you. So I think it can be different but Thierry is right.’
Host Kate Abdo then pressed Richards about how the use of ‘f*** off’ could be a personal insult, to which the former City defender agreed.
Henry then interjected as he said: ‘It doesn’t matter if it’s personal or not it is an insult,’ but Richards replied: ‘When you say f*** you it’s more personal.’
Thierry Henry disagreed with Richards and insisted Bellingham shouldn’t have acted like he did
Bellingham’s two-match ban was upheld by the RFEF’s disciplinary committee on Wednesday
This left Henry becoming increasingly infuriated as he turned around and quipped: ‘We went too far, it was a red, bye!’
Carlo Ancelotti’s side had been leading Osasuna 1-0 at the time of Bellingham’s red card but they were forced to settle for a draw after Ante Budimir’s second-half penalty.
Speaking after his sending off, Bellingham had said: ‘It’s clear that [the referee] made a mistake, there was a miscommunication. I remember the incident very well, but also I’ve seen the video.
‘The video doesn’t match the [referee’s] report… I hope the footage will be reviewed.’
Ancelotti added post-match: ‘I think [the referee] didn’t understand English well.
‘[Bellingham] said f*** off, not f*** you. [The referee] made a mistake… I don’t think it’s offensive… Bellingham didn’t do anything to get sent off today.’
Explosive reports in Spain subsequently claimed that Madrid have considered quitting LaLiga in the face of the latest officiating storm, feeling the sending off was only the most recent of a slew of decisions to have gone against them so far this season.
The referee at the heart of the row, meanwhile, has said his family have been targeted with threats and ‘attacks’ and insisted football is ‘promoting violence’.
Real boss Carlo Ancelotti had attempted to defend Bellingham following the Osasuna game
Claiming officials were now constantly at risk, he told El Partidazo: ‘Today it was my turn, but how long has the committee been suffering these attacks?
‘They are vilifying my nephews, they are attacking my nine brothers, my 80-year-old father went to mass today and… I better keep quiet.
‘What are we creating? How can we show in a newspaper the barbarities that we are saying? Are we crazy? Are we controlling violence or promoting it?
‘This is getting out of hand. What sport are we creating with football?’
Real are set to launch another appeal over the decision with Bellingham currently banned for LaLiga matches against Girona and Real Betis over the next fortnight.