The round of 16 clash between Iraq and Jordan at the 2023 AFC Asian Cup was not just a football match, as it turned into a nightmare due to questionable decisions made by the referee, accusations of arbitral injustice and calls for a replay. While Jordan emerged victorious with a thrilling 3-2 victory, the arbitration decisions cast a long shadow, sparking outrage and debate throughout the sports world.
With Iraq leading 2-1 in regulation time, Ayman Hussein scored the second goal against the Jordanian team. But he received a red card because of the way he celebrated, in which he imitated the way the Jordanian players celebrated when they scored a goal on the Iraqi goal, as they were pretending to eat a meal called mansaf, which is a famous meal in Jordan, and after the way Ayman Hussein celebrated, they received the second yellow card, which exposed him to expulsion and this caused his team to be reduced to 10 players. It seems that this controversial decision, which many considered cruel, led to a change of momentum, which Jordan took advantage of and scored two goals in stoppage time to achieve a victory.
The match between Iraq and Jordan at the Asian Cup caused widespread controversy due to the refereeing disaster, and this incident attracted the attention of various media and sports bodies, each of which provided their own comments and opinions on this issue, including:
AFC: the Asian Football Confederation, although acknowledging the concerns, chose to endorse the result, stating that the referee's decisions are final.
FIFA: FIFA has maintained its position of not intervening in referees ' decisions unless clear evidence of wrongdoing emerges.
Al Jazeera: the prominent news channel called the match an " arbitration disaster "and called the red card decision"questionable".
BBC Sport: World Radio highlighted the "storm of controversy" that surrounded the match.
Arab News: the regional newspaper described it as the" most dramatic match "of the tournament and was marred by"Joy and controversy".
Qatar's bn sport: the channel considered that the decision to expel Ayman Hussein was unfair, and demanded a rematch.
The British newspaper "The Sun" described the decision to expel Ayman Hussein as an "arbitration disaster", and stated that the Iranian-born Australian referee, Alireza Faghani, "wronged the Iraqi national team".
The Spanish newspaper "Marca"said that" the expulsion of Ayman Hussein is unjustified", and confirmed that "the referee Faghani missed the opportunity to watch a great game".
The British "Sky Sports" website: considered that "the expulsion is unfair, and significantly affected the course of the match".
"The expulsion is undeserved, and it caused the loss of Iraq, "he said.
Mistakes in the Iraq-Jordan match in which the referee had to intervene
Undeserved expulsion of the player Ayman Hussein: in the 70th minute of the match, Ayman Hussein scored the equalizing goal for the Iraqi national team, and celebrated in front of the Jordanian fans by imitating the celebration of the Jordanian players to score the goal of progress, where he ate the Jordanian dish "mansaf". The referee considered Ayman Hussein's celebration to be "disrespectful", and dismissed him with a red card. Many sports experts and analysts called the expulsion decision "unfair" and "undeserved", considering it a "turning point in the match".
No penalty awarded to Iraq: in the 80th minute, the Iraqi national team player, Ali Adnan, was obstructed inside the Jordanian penalty area, but the referee did not award a penalty kick in favor of Iraq. The players of the Iraqi national team demanded a penalty kick, but the referee did not respond to them.
Not to count a foul on the Jordanian national team player: in the 85th minute, the Jordanian national team player, Yazan al-Naimat, blocked the Iraqi national team player, Zeidan Iqbal, inside the Jordanian penalty area, but the referee also did not count a penalty kick in favor of Iraq.
There have been many cases of incorrect offside calls, missed fouls and controversial penalty decisions. These refereeing errors greatly affected the outcome of the match and left both teams and their supporters frustrated.
It turned out later that the referee Alireza Faghani of Iranian origins, an international referee since 2008, had refereed three more matches for Iraq, and strangely enough, Iraq had lost all of them, this is the fourth match he referees, to point fingers at the referee that he is biased and that his decisions are intentional, which is the reason for Iraq's loss in all the matches he refereed.
Fan bases, critics and even some former players expressed their opinions:
The Iraqi Football Federation: filed an official complaint with the AFC demanding a review of the match and the possibility of a replay.
Former Iraqi players: several famous personalities criticized the refereeing and echoed the call for a rematch.
Jordanian fans: while celebrating the victory, some acknowledged the controversy surrounding the red card.
Should the match be replayed
In addition to leading commentators and sports analysts criticized the referee for his decisions and argued that the mistakes made directly affected the final result, some suggested a rematch to correct the injustice caused by the refereeing mistakes and argued that the integrity of the tournament and the spirit of fair competition should take precedence over any possible logistical challenges.
On the other hand, there were those who believed that the rematch would set a dangerous precedent. They argued that referees are human and prone to mistakes, that accepting mistakes is part of the game and stressed the importance of accepting the final result and moving on rather than dwelling on past disagreements.
Given the large protests, the question remains: should the match be replayed It is highly unlikely that replays of matches based on controversial refereeing decisions set a dangerous precedent however, the incident raises crucial questions about refereeing standards and accountability in high-stakes matches.
The controversy surrounding the match also came to a head when the AFC called an emergency meeting to address the situation and during the meeting the AFC reviewed video footage of the match and listened to the opinions of the various parties involved, after careful consideration they decided not to replay the match, the AFC acknowledged the refereeing mistakes but stated that it did not meet the criteria for a rematch based on its regulations.
In conclusion, the match between Iraq and Jordan in the Asian Cup was marred by an refereeing disaster that caused widespread controversy, the media, sports bodies and fans expressed their concerns and opinions on this issue while some called for a replay of the match to correct the injustice caused by refereeing errors others believed that accepting mistakes is part of the game, in the end the AFC decided not to replay the match stressing the need to adhere to its regulations, this incident serves as a reminder of the importance of fair play and the challenges faced in managing high-risk matches.