Poor refereeing sours Gulf Cup

Sheikh Eissa bin Rashid Al Khalifa, the Vice Chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports in Bahrain and the head of their delegation in the Gulf Cup, returned to Riyadh to stay with the team.

Bahrain players had threatened to withdraw from the tournament because of poor refereeing. However, the official delegation announced Bahrain will continue in the competition and awarded their players SR 10000 each.

Sheikh Eissa said "It is natural that our players felt dejected and let down. All their efforts were squandered by the referees in two successive matches against Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. This has deprived the team of valuable points. We are now at the bottom of the standings with a single point though the players have displayed the highest standards of football in the tournament so far."

Sheikh Rashid said that the mistakes were committed by European referees who are expected to be role models for their counterparts in the Gulf region.

"It was amazing that the standards of these referees were less than some of our referees in the area like Ali Bujsaim of UAE, Saad Kamil of Kuwait and Abdul Rahman Al Dhaid of Saudi Arabia who have been officiating in the World Cup. I wonder why our best referees do not take part in the Gulf Cup? I am confident that they will never be that bad."

Sheikh Eissa blamed the national football associations of the participating teams for not selecting their best referees to take part in the tournament.

"Some referees are being selected because they are friends of the officials or because their FA want them to gain the Fifa international badge or for any other reason which has nothing to do with his qualifications as a good referee. We should form a referees committee that will select the best referees from the region and the Arab world to officiate in the Gulf Cup which has become a strong tournament."

Sheikh Eissa found excuses for the Bahrain players to decide to withdraw from the tournament. "They were one of the favourites to win the tournament. They really played well but referees squandered all their efforts. They were treated unfairly and that was why they decided to return home, with pressure piling upon them."

Regarding the decision of the official delegation of Bahrain to continue in the tournament, Sheikh Eissa said "The Gulf Cup is not only football, but is has more noble aims than winning and losing. It is an opportunity to gather the youth of the Gulf countries to increase their mutual brotherly relations. To achieve that cause we decided to stay despite our belief that our team have been a victim of bad refereeing."

Sheikh Ahmed Al Fahad, the President of Kuwait FA, said that he understands the causes that forced Bahrain players to ask their officials to withdraw from the tournament. "They have been victims of bad refereeing in their two matches against the Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. I really understand their feelings. I believe if they were not affected by poor refereeing they might have been one of the favourites to win the title.

"Yes I believe that the refereeing mistakes were not deliberate but that deprived the team of valuable points and put the players in a bad mood seeing their efforts being squandered by others. It is frustrating and disappointing,"Sheikh Ahmed added.

UAE's Fifa referee, Ali Bujsaim, said he decided not to stand in the Gulf Cup matches because some of the officials take sides and support players against referees.

"In Oman, a player spat upon the referee and when discussing his report one of the members of the disciplinary committee defended the players and opposed taking actions against him. But a neutral supervisor from the Fifa reported the case to Fifa and the player was suspended. These practices do not encourage me to take part in the tournament."

Meanwhile, it is widely expected that Rune Pedersen, from Norway, who officiated the match between Bahrain and Kuwait will be excluded from the tournament and may be sent back home after the mistakes he committed in that match.

Saudi Arabian goalkeeper Abdullah Al Deayea was reported to have been recommended by German manager, Rudi Voeller to Bayern Munich as a potential professional player. Munich is one of the most successful club in Germany and among the best in clubs Europe.

Local newspaper reports confirmed that a representative of the club will visit Riyadh to watch the remaining matches of the Gulf Cup to see Al Deayea in action.