FC Kansas City coach Vlatko Andonovski fined for last week’s critical comments about officiating

When Shea Groom was shown a red card in the first half of Saturday’s 3-2 loss to Sky Blue FC, FC Kansas City coach Vlatko Andonovski had seen enough.

It was the second game in a row his team had to play down a player. This time, he wasn’t going to remain silent.

“When you have a ref making a mistake, five years in a row, it’s somebody’s job to relieve the ref,” Andonovski said after the game via teleconference. “Same thing as players, if they make mistakes for five years, I don’t think they’re going to be playing in this profession still. Same thing with refs.”

For his tirade, which included a shot at the lack of consistency of officiating around the National Women’s Soccer League, Andonovski was fined an undisclosed amount by the league on Thursday.

The NWSL also issued fines to Houston Dash interim coach Omar Morales for his comments after Carli Lloyd was ejected from last week’s game against Portland Thorns, and to Dash midfielder Amber Brooks for “an inappropriate gesture made on the field,” according to the league release.

"(In Lloyd's case) It shouldn't have been a red card, maybe a yellow at most. And if that is yellow then Horan should have had seven yellows, and it's a different game," Morales said in the Houston Chronicle. "The consistency of the refereeing in this league is not there. It is the most deficient part of our game, unfortunately.

"The biggest thing is, do they watch these games and do they learn? Is there a growth factor there with what they do, or do they just come do a game and go home and sleep it off? It has impacted a lot of people."

This story was originally published July 13, 2017 at 4:18 PM with the headline "FC Kansas City coach Vlatko Andonovski fined for last week’s critical comments about officiating."