Controversial moments from the first leg of the Azerbaijan Cup semifinals have been clarified.
The Chairman of the AFFA Referees Committee, Frank De Bleeckere, has commented on the situations in the matches Araz-Nakhchivan vs Qarabag (1:0) and Neftchi vs Sabah (1:2).
De Bleeckere first addressed the penalty incident in the 24th minute of the Araz-Nakhchivan vs Qarabag match: “During a corner kick taken by Araz-Nakhchivan, the ball is passed towards the near post. The 17th player of this team (Issouf Paro) plays the ball with his right foot. Behind him, the 7th player of Qarabag (Yassine Benzia) strikes Paro’s right leg without touching the ball. The referee allowed the game to continue. VAR intervened and invited the referee to review the episode. After viewing the replays, the referee awarded a penalty in favor of Araz-Nakhchivan. The referee’s decision was correct.”
De Bleeckere also commented on two incidents in the Neftchi vs Sabah match. Regarding the penalty in the 19th minute, he said: “The 17th player of Sabah (Tellur Mutallimov) fouled Neftchi’s 91st player (Agadadash Salyanskiy) from behind in the penalty area. We support the referee’s decision to award a penalty.”
De Bleeckere admitted a refereeing mistake in the 90+1st minute: “During an attack by Sabah, the ball reaches the 20th player of their team (Joy Lance Mickels). He moves towards the goal line inside the penalty area and strikes the ball. After he shoots, Neftchi’s 44th player (Yuri Matias) makes late contact with Mickels’ leg. The referee continued the game and awarded a corner in favor of ‘Sabah’. The contact with Mickels’ leg was clearly visible. Therefore, we were expecting a penalty and VAR intervention.”
Idman.biz
