Hauge: A tough game to referee

Referee Terje Hauge has admitted it was tough refereeing Chelsea's tie.

Referee Terje Hauge has admitted it was tough refereeing Chelsea's UEFA Champions League defeat to Barcelona.

The Norwegian official showed a straight red card to Asier Del Horno in the first half to attract criticism from a number of quarters.

The Spanish full back was guilty of a badly mistimed tackle on Barca's exciting starlet Lionel Messi, and Hauge thinks the incident looks less clear-cut when displayed in slow-motion replays on TV.

"I feel it is important to see the situation live," he told TV3.

"When you see it in slow motion, you can be fooled by how he got into the situation.

"I have got a good feeling [that I made the right decision] myself, but the red card was a key moment for how the match would develop.

"The incident will probably get discussed in the coming few days. It was expected that it would be a tough match [to referee] and it was."

Hauge could also have awarded two penalties to Barcelona while Chelsea will feel Carles Puyol was lucky to escape a second yellow card after a bad tackle on Arjen Robben.