Craig Levein has said he was once told by a referee “you’re getting nothing today” as he questioned the objectivity of whistlers in Scotland.
The former Hearts manager was discussing the SFA charge recently handed down to Rangers manager Steven Gerrard on BBC Radio Scotland’s Sportsound programme.
Gerrard was given a notice of complaint for asking whether the challenge by Dundee United defender Ryan Edwards on Alfredo Morelos – which left the Rangers striker with a gash in his leg – would have received no punishment from referee Kevin Clancy if it were the other way about.
SFA laws prohibit managers from indicating “bias or incompetence” by match officials.
Levein, instead of defending Gerrard, instead questioned why such a law exists. He believes referees “as human beings” are biased. He then recalled a time where an official, angry at Levein, made it clear he wouldn’t be getting the rub of the green.
He said: “I’ve had situations with a referee saying ‘you’re getting nothing today’. That’s absolutely true.
“But I can’t complain. The rules don’t allow me. I can’t say he’s biased. It was just the two of us at the side of the pitch, nobody else heard it. The referee said it right to my face. It was absolutely serious.
“The rules don’t allow you to say the truth.
“I’m talking about instances where referees have been biased, or they’ve been annoyed at me for something else, and they’ve consistently given decisions against me, and one of them actually told me to my face.”
When asked when the incident occurred, Levein said it was “a long time ago”.