Super Eagles’ midfielder, John Obi Mikel, said France forward, Olivier Giroud, should have seen the red for elbowing him during Monday’s Round of 16 clash in Brasilia, Brazil.
The Chelsea player claimed referee Mark Geiger saw Giroud strike him in a 29th minute tangle, but opted against showing the Arsenal man a card before France battled to a 2-0 win and a place in the quarter-finals.
Mikel said: “Yes I got an elbow and the referee saw it and he only gave him a warning, not even a yellow card, nothing.
“It was bad.
“We know the game.
“If you see it, act on it.
“The ref saw it.
“He did catch me.
“I don’t know if it was too hard but the intention was definitely there.
“I don’t think Giroud is a dirty player.
“I have played against him several times before and everyone wants to win for his country.
“He hasn’t done those sort of things before so maybe it was just one of those things in the heat of the moment.”
Mikel was also pained by Ogenyi Onazi, who left the pitch on a stretcher during the second half, following a challenge with Blaise Matuidi.
Mikel reported a suspected broken ankle for Onazi and, although he refused to criticise Matuidi, the 27-year-old did not pass up the opportunity to question Geiger once more.
He said: “I thought the referee didn’t help us at all.
“There were some heavy challenges and I think Ogenyi Onazi has broken his ankle.
“Challenges like this are bad but it was a 50-50.
“He just miscalculated.”
Follow The Eagle Online Channel on WhatsApp
