Referee caught in viral Chelsea huddle would ‘rather not be in the news’ after awkward moment

Former Premier League referee Graham Scott has defended Paul Tierney for his involvement in the Chelsea huddle at the weekend.

Before they lost to Newcastle at home for the first time since 2012 on Saturday, the Blues had their pre-match huddle on the halfway line.

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Referee Tierney ended up being caught in the middle, leading to a bizarre image of him and the players going viral.

It wasn’t a situation that could be taken too seriously, with Cole Palmer putting his arm on the referee and laughing throughout.

And when asked on Hawksbee and Jacobs if he would have allowed that to happen, Scott said: “I’d like to think I would have found a way out, as Andy was just saying, it is awkward and embarrassing.

“Chelsea could have made his life a lot easier by just creating a space and stepping aside.

“But I’d like to think I would have found a way out. I have sympathy for Paul because he gets caught up in the middle of it, and then, it’s too late.

“Then you don’t know how long it is going to go on, and you’ve got a camera on you.

“I would have made a bit of a scene and a fuss to make it clear I wasn’t too impressed by the whole thing.

“I am waiting for Chelsea’s opponents to do the same thing at the same thing – that would be really interesting.”

Then, when asked whether referees like being at the centre of these things or not, he replied: “No, definitely not.

“Paul, in particular, doesn’t – he’d much rather be in the background.

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“There are a few refs who do seem to like to be the centre of attention more than they should, but there are a few who keep a lower profile.

“He is certainly one who would rather not be in the news for this kind of thing.”

Alternative view

In contrast to what Scott said about Tierney, Darren Bent believes the referee could have made an effort to get out of the huddle, and that he did actually enjoy the attention.

Speaking on Drive, he said: “I don’t mind them doing the huddle around the ball, but the referee does not need to be in there, that’s the worst part about the whole thing.

“Paul Tierney, just get out of there! Just get out, what are you doing in there?

“Surely he would go: ‘Lads, come on, stop being stupid, let me out of here.’ He wanted to stay there with that smirk on his face…he loved it.”

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‘Blown out of proportion’

After the incident, Liam Rosenior explained why his team have started to strangely huddle around the ball before kick-off.

The Chelsea manager said: “I’m respectful to the game.

“My players made the decision that they wanted to be around the ball, to respect the ball and show unity and leadership.

“That is not my decision. That was a decision between the leadership group and the team.

“There is nothing they’re doing with that huddle that is disrespectful to the opposition. We had a meeting with the referee. My assistant goes in. The first thing he (Tierney) talks about is our huddle. He says about when I complained about Arsenal being in our half.

“We’re not being disrespectful to the opposition. If Paul had focused more on his job, which was to make the right decisions, we have a penalty. I don’t think anybody in this room can say that Woltemade doesn’t kick Cole Palmer down in the box.

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“So let’s focus on the things that are important. My team showing unity is not as important as getting the decisions right on the pitch.”

And ahead of the Blues taking on PSG in the Champions League, he has revealed that his side are considering a change in where they hold their pre-match huddles.

He said: “I think in terms of the huddle, I think it’s been blown out of proportion, to be honest.

“It’s a small, small thing amongst many, many serious things that we need to address, such as a massive game against PSG tomorrow.

“In terms of the huddle, the lads have always wanted to show unity and togetherness. I think they’ll continue to do that.

“What we don’t want to do is antagonise or bring the noise on ourselves. And we’ll make the decision on where we do that on the pitch tomorrow.”