Mancini furious as referee rules out ‘winner’

MANCHESTER City manager Roberto Mancini claimed his team were denied a dramatic Champions League victory over Ajax by poor refereeing at the Etihad Stadium.

City fought back from 2–0 down to 2–2 in a gripping Group ‘D’ encounter before having a goal disallowed and being denied a penalty in the closing moments.

Victory would have kept their hopes of reaching the knock-out stages in their hands but the result all but eliminates them from the competition prematurely for a second successive year.

Mancini went on to the field to confront referee Peter Rasmussen after the final whistle, with his main gripe being the 88th–minute goal Sergio Aguero had ruled out for offside by Aleksandar Kolarov.

City's players also complained after Mario Balotelli was denied a spot–kick for a shirt pull in injury time because Rasmussen blew the final whistle.





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