March 12 – Tempers flare in the UEFA Champions League for many reasons, but on Wednesday night in Paris, the flashpoint in Chelsea FC’s crushing 5–2 defeat to current holders, Paris Saint-Germain came from one of the game’s oldest sideline traditions…the ball boy.
Chelsea winger Pedro Neto has apologised after shoving a ball boy in stoppage time. With the match slipping away, Neto attempted to retrieve the ball quickly after it rolled out of play. As the ball boy appeared reluctant to return the ball, Neto pushed him in the chest.
The ball boy tumbled backwards into the advertising hoardings in what at first glance looked theatrical.
“I want to come out and say the situation that happened on the pitch, I want to apologise to the ball boy,” Neto told TNT Sports. “I already spoke with him, the emotions of the game with us losing, I want to pick up the ball, and I gave him a little push.
“I saw that I hurt him and straight away I apologised, I am not like this. I gave him my shirt because that cannot happen, so I am really, really sorry.”
“He was happy that I gave him the shirt and said sorry like, 35 times.”
Fortunately for Neto, the ball boy quickly got back to his feet and appeared unharmed. Several PSG players moved over to check on him, while others confronted Neto as the incident briefly sparked some handbags between players.
Luckily for Neto the match officials chose not to sanction the Portuguese winger with a red card. However UEFA has charged him with “unsporting behavior”, with a disciplinary decision to follow “in due course”. The likely outcome is a one-match ban for Neto.
Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior admitted he had not seen the moment clearly but apologised if his player had crossed a line.
“I saw there was an altercation,” Rosenior said. “I haven’t seen [the incident]. If there is wrongdoing on our part, I apologise on behalf of the club [and] Pedro has done so in interviews.”
Yet the episode also raises a question that UEFA has wrestled with before and that’s the match role of ball boys.
In the Premier League, cones are positioned around the pitch holding spare match balls to speed up restarts and remove the possibility of gamesmanship. Without a ball boy in the middle of the moment, there’s no delay, no confrontation, and no controversy.
Football, of course, thrives on tradition. Ball boys have long been part of the theatre and have been known to aid the home side while sometimes frustrating the opposition. But as stakes rise and television cameras capture every movement, even a split-second interaction can spiral into a global talking point. Just ask Neto!
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