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Everton: Pierluigi Collina incident vs Villarreal resurfaces as Toffees supporters lambaste ex-official
Back in 2005, with Everton seemingly in with a shot of reaching the Champions League group stages, the Toffees threatened to mount what would have been a memorable comeback against Villarreal, with Duncan Ferguson netting a perfectly good goal which resulted in referee Pierluigi Collina ruling it out for a ‘foul‘ from striker Marcus Bent.
Trailing 3-2 on aggregate, and after surviving early domination from the La Liga side during the second leg, Mikel Arteta’s free-kick found Ferguson, who headed in an equaliser to briefly level the tie – but official Collina almost immediately blew his whistle and ruled it out for Bent apparently pulling on a player’s shirt in the build-up.
Later on, Yellow Submarine striker Diego Forlan sealed a 2-1 home win in extra time for the La Liga outfit, sending them through to the group stages as 4-2 winners over both legs at the Toffees’ expense. As a result, when it comes to referee Collina, many Everton supporters still haven’t forgiven him over the Ferguson incident, with the Italian ruling out what looked like being a crucial equaliser.
In response to the official’s 60th birthday, these Toffees supporters have let him know their stance on that historic moment, with one labelling him ‘corrupt’ – find all of their best comments down below.
Screwed us over in our champ league match
— Not so fed up everton fan right now (@mersysideblue) February 13, 2020
Corrupt egg head.
— Paul (@pdwyer1987) February 13, 2020
That game turned me against him….. never forgiven #cheat
— Anwen Edwards ️ (@AlfaLady) February 13, 2020
Rat
— paulbeard (@paulbeard2809) February 13, 2020
Classic example of one game too far !! Robbed us
— Steve Lamb CDM (@chucklebutton) February 13, 2020
‘A refereeing legend’
That same ‘legend’ denied Everton a goal and therefore a Champions League sport for no apparent reason whatsoever.
— (@StyloDZN) February 13, 2020
Would Everton have made history in the Champions League group stages? Join the discussion by commenting below…
