Jozy Altidore calls MLS referees “some of the worst in the world”

Although he’s away with the United States at the Gold Cup, Jozy Altidore had something to say about a non-call from last night’s Toronto FC game.

In the 80th minute of last night’s game, while TFC were up 1-0, Alejandro Pozuelo threw the ball in for Ayo Akinola, who received the ball on the edge of the penalty area. A D.C. United player came charging in and brought him down, quite ferociously, but the referee didn’t call a penalty.

As you can see from the video below, the D.C. player clattered Akinola, not getting any of the ball. Usually, that is a straight red and a penalty, but not only did referee Robert Sibiga (who had a clear view of the foul) not call the penalty, he didn’t check with VAR either. Have a look for yourself:

Altidore, never one to hide his opinion on things, tweeted this on Saturday morning:

Jay Chapman also made his opinion clear, sharing a tweet with a camera emoji:

D.C. United got a penalty, and scored it, in the dying moments of the match, after another controversial non-call. Richie Laryea was fouled before the corner that led to D.C. United’s penalty, but referee Robert Sibiga didn’t call that one either. It wasn’t a good look for Sibiga, MLS or the use of VAR technology.