Officials look into Romanov accusation of referee bias

The European governing body Uefa and the Scottish Football Association have both confirmed that they are investigating the latest outburst by Hearts' majority shareholder Vladimir Romanov.

The controversial owner issued an astonishing statement on the club's official website in which he accused the Russian referee Yuri Baskakov of being corrupt. He also reiterated claims he made last season that Scottish referees were biased against his side.

Baskakov was in charge for the recent Uefa Champions' League qualifier against AEK Athens in Greece in which the Hearts midfielders Neil McCann and Julien Brellier were sent off. The Lithuanian-based businessman claims to have made an official complaint to Uefa about the Russian official and it is understood the basis of this centres on remarks made by Baskakov to Romanov and others before the game in Athens as well as his performance during the match which Hearts lost 3-0 to go out of the competition 5-1 on aggregate.

"Football is supposed to be what is happening on the field of play, not turned into a show thanks to the referee," he said at the time. However, a spokesman for Uefa said: "We've taken a note of Mr Romanov's comments and we will look at them. We have had such cases before, but every case is different so you can't compare any two. There are a whole range of sanctions we can take, such as a warning, a censure, a fine or a suspension. However, as it stands, there is no case and it is not up to us to speculate. But we will be looking at his comments, although I cannot say when they will be addressed."

Elsewhere, the former Hibernian striker Garry O'Connor claims that Celtic and other British clubs have showed an interest in him.

O'Connor, who joined Lokomotiv Moscow in March, was the subject of an inquiry from Hearts' last month. "Not only Hearts, but also Celtic and a few English clubs," he said. "It is tempting, and one day I would like to play in England - but only in the Premiership. For the time being I am a Lokomotiv player, and I am satisfied with that."

http://sport.independent.co.uk/football/scotland/