OGC Nice president Jean-Pierre Rivère spoke to the media in the mixed zone on Friday evening after Le Gym's 1-0 defeat in Lyon.

What is your first reaction to this evening’s result?

Being a referee is very difficult. If he makes mistakes, that's normal. If I took the referee's whistle, I'd make mistakes too. We all make mistakes. But at some point, they add up. It's not just this match, or last weekend's match: there have been a lot of matches where we've had a lot of refereeing errors. The stakes are high. I reiterate, anyone can make a mistake. I completely respect that. What I don't understand is that we have VAR. What's the point of it? And again, I’m not just talking about this match. I’m talking about a lot of matches. We have to ask ourselves some good questions. Mr Turpin (video referee at the Nice-Monaco match) sent Dante off in the last match, when the referee on the pitch didn't see anything.  Mr Turpin called for a red... Well done Monaco, they won, very good. But when I heard tonight that we have Monsieur Turpin as the central referee, I was a little worried. Call it a hunch, I don't know. The reality is there for all to see. We're not bad losers, but at some point you have to say stop. We can't keep racking up games like that.

You have the impression that Nice isn't being refereed...

(Interrupts) It's not Nice, I'm not even referring to my team. Once again, if a referee makes a mistake, it's normal, it's human. But today you have elements that allow us to work differently. When you see the last foul on Lotomba... he gave the foul the other way! Can't VAR say to him: "Referee, perhaps the action needs to be reviewed"? It needs to work a little more efficiently, so yes, tonight we're angry.

How many questionable situations do you think there were tonight?

The first, the handball, the rules are very clear: there's no penalty. There's not even anything to discuss. But the elbow in the box (on Guessand)! And the foul on Lotomba... One out of two is balanced. That's not balanced. So there you have it, I never criticise refereeing, but at some point you have to say stop, this can’t continue.

Did Nice lose because of the referee tonight?

We lost a match because we may have made mistakes, because Lyon may have played well. But when you have a lot of refereeing mistakes piling up as the match goes on, at the end of the day you have to say stop.

What would you like to see improved?

I repeat myself again: mistakes are human and understandable. I'm not arguing with that. But we need to understand how things work, because if we don't, what's the point? It's important that we have explanations. When you ask for explanations, you get given the runaround. We ask for a bit of education, a bit of understanding. Before this match, 4 or 5 days ago, so well before this match, we asked the Refereeing Department to come and see us because we think it's important to come and meet the players, our staff, because they don't understand the decisions anymore. It's scheduled for next week. I think we'll add tonight's event to the agenda. All I want is for someone to explain things to us and for us to understand. Tonight, as I stand before you, I honestly don't understand.

Is your anger directed more at Mr Turpin, in relation to what also happened last week, or at the refereeing system in general?

Not the refereeing system. Once again, I'm not criticising referees. It's one of the most difficult jobs in football. There are referees who are a bit more expressive and open. Tonight, I thought Mr Turpin had a very bad game. (To the journalists) Correct me if I’m wrong, I don't know what you think. Maybe I don't have an objective view of things. When you're with your team, maybe you don't have a good perspective. But I think I’m right. I went and spoke to the referee in a non-threatening way. I just want explanations. Some referees you can talk to, others you can't. We're all stakeholders in the game. And there's a lot at stake. (To the journalists) I'm going to ask you a question, reversing the roles: "How did you find the refereeing this evening?

Journalists: "Questionable at best, even very bad…"

There you go. Anyone can have a bad match from time to time. It happens to everyone. VAR is there to compensate.  In 13 years, I don't think I've ever complained about refereeing. But now it's piling up. It's been several games in a row, not just this one or Monaco.

Considering the Monaco match and now tonight, were you surprised by Mr Turpin's appointment?

It surprised me, yes. Honestly. When I saw Mr Turpin tonight, I was more than apprehensive.

 

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