Football brawl row: Coach's fury

Back in the UAE after their three-week training camp in the UK, the reigning UFL champions continued preparations for the new season at their training ground with the players looking relaxed, suggesting the incident has already been forgotten.

However, when quizzed about it by reporters later, Andone who had appeared composed, fiercely leapt to the defence of his players who have been accused of initiating the brawl in the referee’s report to the English FA. “In England, the one who is guilty is the referee, not the players,” said Andone.

“The referee was very bad. He needs to understand that a team coming from another country needs a little bit of protection. After a few tough kicks, it’s normal for a player to get nervous,” added the Romanian, who revealed it was not the first game of the tour where tempers had spilled over.

“In each game we had this problem. It was incredible. We know in England, the referee is used to blowing his whistle less whenever there’s a challenge. But come on, this is a friendly game. I’ve come for preparation, not to accompany my player to a hospital. This is the reason why Romanian teams usually avoid going to England,” he said.

Khalil who was on the field at the time the melee broke out agreed with his coach that the referee could have prevented matters from getting out of hand. “The referee should always have better control but I don’t think [this referee] knew how to control the game. Anyway, we shouldn’t make too much of it because this is something that can happen in any game,” said Khalil.