Henriksen slams referee after Mainz lose to Heidenheim

In a match in which referee Florian Exner handed out 10 yellow cards and two red cards, Mainz went down 0-2 to Heidenheim on Saturday afternoon.

After the game, Mainz coach Bo Henriksen criticized referee Florian Exner.

"It was a fair game, so ten yellow cards is completely crazy," said the Mainz coach.

The 49-year-old Dane was particularly unhappy that Andreas Hanche-Olsen was sent off after just 29 minutes for a second yellow card, which put Mainz in a difficult position, especially as they were already 0-1 down at the time.

"I have never seen a yellow-red card like that before," said Henriksen, lamenting the decision.

According to Henriksen, Hanche-Olsen's first foul was not tactical in nature, but occurred during a normal challenge for the ball, and the defender only touched his opponent with his chest in the situation that led to the second yellow card.

All in all, Exner's decisions were "a shame for the game and a shame for us," said Henriksen.