Decision to replay Ipswich game ‘disgrace’ – Ismael

Valerien Ismael, the manager of Blackburn, described the decision to replay Rovers’ abandoned match against Ipswich as “disgraceful” and “bad publicity for English football.”

When last Saturday’s Championship game at Ewood Park was postponed in the 79th minute due to heavy rain, which made the pitch unplayable, Rovers were 1-0 up against the 10-man visitors.

The English Football League (EFL) board “by a majority” on Thursday recommended the full replay of the game.

Ismael told BBC Radio Lancashire that he had received numerous messages from sporting directors and players from places where I worked.

Ismael’s comments echo those of his team, who expressed disappointment with the outcome on Thursday.

The Frenchman, 49, added that when you get that many messages from people all over the world, they all know something is wrong.

It will always be a political case if you don’t need new guidelines right away.

No new date has yet been set for the rearranged fixture.

The EFL stated in a statement announcing the verdict that “the decision is in line with recent precedents relating to abandoned fixtures and is intended to uphold the integrity of the league competition, which should, wherever possible, be based on a complete set of fixtures that have been played until the day’s conclusion.

For Blackburn, who are 18th in the table after five games, victory over Ipswich would have been their third successive victory.

When they travel to Charlton on Saturday, Ismael is optimistic that the situation will inspire his side.

We are human beings and experience frustration because there isn’t enough fairness, he said, so the timing was poor.

You experience a negative feeling, but it doesn’t alter the pitch’s performance.

“We just need to deal with adversity, and that requires resilience, mental strength, and togetherness,” I told the players, “Our performance was right, we are playing with good consistency.”