Salah deserved a penalty! Mudau made a deliberate foul in Bafana’s AFCON loss

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Salah deserved a penalty! Mudau made a deliberate foul in Bafana’s AFCON loss

Bafana Bafana and Egypt have been trending since Friday after their dramatic Group B Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) outing.

The main ones have been a controversial penalty given to Mohamed Salah after Mamelodi Sundowns defender Khuliso Mudau was adjudged to have committed an offense in the 18-yard area.

The second incident was when Egypt defender Yasser Ibrahim handled the ball in the area but the referee, despite a lengthy VAR check, opted against awarding Bafana Bafana a penalty.

What Hugo Broos said

“Even Salah said to me after the game that he was surprised it was a penalty. It was ridiculous. In the pre-tournament meeting they said if the arm is extended away from the body, it is a penalty,” the Belgian stated after the game.

“Then they said it was his supporting arm. Who invented this supporting arm? His arm was extended and it hit his arm.

“I want to talk about the meeting you get before a tournament. No one knows what to do. For 45 minutes they explain the rules, there are 25 to 50 rules. It is a penalty, then it is not a penalty.

“It is a red card for a player and then it is not. By the end, there are so many rules that no one knows what to do,” Broos concluded.

Was it a legit penalty to Egypt?

Former FIFA Referee and Video Assistant Referee (VAR) instructor Jerome Damon has lauded referee Pasifik Ndabihimana for making a bold decision by awarding the Pharaohs a penalty.

“Deliberate hand in the face. Not challenging for the ball. [Penalty kick and a yellow card], Correct decision,” he posted.

Earlier on, he had also stated the officials were correct by not awarding South Africa a late penalty.

“Ref saw handball outside penalty area and whistled foul. VAR first checked where the contact was, then saw inside penalty area. So if handball, then penalty kick.

“VAR second check: Handball or not? The defender was sliding towards the ball and it hits the supporting arm [one coming down to ground]. Was it a consequence of the slide? Yes. Was it justified? Yes. So non-deliberate. That’s why VAR recommended [on field referee] for possible no-penalty.

“Ref relooked and agreed. Non-deliberate handball which is not punishable as arm was not making body unnaturally bigger. Final decision: No offense. Restart: Drop ball,” he concluded.

The next game for Hugo Broos side will be on Monday against Zimbabwe.

<!-- Author Start -->Willis Sob<!-- Author End -->

Willis Sob

Author

Willis Sob is an experienced journalist who has been in the game since 2009, covering major assignments around the continent.
His hunger for African football is unmatched, always getting the best angles and facts to feed the fans and quench their thirst.

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