Ghana head coach Otto Addo has hit out at the decision to award Portugal a penalty in their 3-2 defeat at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Following a cagey first-half, Moroccan-born American referee Ismail Elfath awarded a penalty to Portugal in the 63rd minute after Cristiano Ronaldo went down aftermath a clash with Ghana’s Mohammed Salisu.
The 37-year-old tucked away the resulting penalty to become the first male footballer in history to score in five separate World Cup tournaments – but coach Addo felt disappointed by the ‘gift’ from the referee to the 2016 European champions.
In a post-match press interview, Addo reiterated his disagreement with the on-field official, after refusing to consult the VAR (Video Assistant Referee).
“The referee gave a penalty which wasn’t a penalty; everyone saw that. Why? Because it is Ronaldo or something?” Addo said in his post-match press conference.
When asked if the decision was made due to Ronaldo’s popularity, the 47-year-old manager responded: “I think you’ve to ask the referee. I have no proof of that. We were playing the ball and then there was contact.
“I don’t know whether they weren’t paying attention or whether the VAR wasn’t paying attention – If you look at the replay, we played the ball, it was actually a foul against us.
“If somebody scores a goal, congratulations. But this was really a gift.
“Up to the penalty, everything was possible. Then the game got a little bit wild,” he explained.
Ghana came close to equalling the scoreline, but striker Inaki Williams slipped in front of goal after an error from goalkeeper Diogo Costa.
Eventually, the Black Stars lost the tie despite goals from captain Andre Ayew and debutant Osman Bukari.
The Black Stars will look to put their frustration to good use when they go against South Korea on Monday at the Education City Stadium after the Asian side’s disappointing goalless draw against Uruguay.
