Official protests put Asian referees on the spot

A RASH of complaints about controversial decisions has put Asia’s football referees on the spot despite strenuous efforts to raise standards.

Japan and Thailand both lodged official protests after key decisions went against them in this month’s World Cup qualifiers, while standards are mixed at club level.

Japan were incensed after Takuma Asano’s shot crossed the line against the United Arab Emirates, but went unnoticed by Qatari ref Abdulrahman Al Jassim. They lost the game 2-1.

And Thailand complained when China’s Fu Ming awarded a penalty in the closing minutes of their qualifier against Saudi Arabia, which consigned them to a 1-0 defeat in Riyadh.

“The penalty was not our mistake. In fact, in the first half, we should have been awarded a penalty,” Thai coach Kiatisuk Senamuang told reporters.

Five days later, Saudi Arabia were trailing Iraq 1-0 until they were awarded penalties in the 81st and 87th minutes by Qatar’s Khamis Al Marri. They scored both to win 2-1.

Such controversies are hardly new to football, but they have raised fresh questions about refereeing standards as Asian football strives to match other regions.

Former Iran coach Afshin Ghotbi, who has also taken charge of clubs in Thailand and Japan, said referee selection was a sensitive area for the Asian Football Confederation.

After Japan’s “ghost goal” in Saitama, Japanese fans on social media questioned whether the Arabic-speaking Qatari referee was biased in favour of the UAE.

The Kuala Lumpur-based Asian Football Confederation refused to comment on individual referees.

But it has been increasingly active in referee development and education, holding seminars and courses all over the continent.