CAF CC: Furious Matano lays into Libyan whistler who handled the Sfaxien duel

Tusker head coach Robert Matano has once again pointed an accusing finger to the match day officials for their 1-0 CAF Confederation Cup playoff loss to Tunisian side CS Sfaxien.

Matano heavily criticized South African whistler Thando Ndzandzeka for the first leg of the playoff staged at Nyayo Stadium a week ago saying that he had denied them a legitimate goal and made questionable calls.

The veteran tactician accused Libyan centre referee Moataz Ibrahim for showing open biasness towards the hosts who won the tie from the spot after Tanzanian import Kalos Kirenge was adjudged to have hacked Ghaith Maaroufi in the box.

Aymen Harzi converted from the spot to send the three-time champions to the group stages.

Matano who remained adamant that Tusker were not tossed out fairly criticized Ibrahim for having a fixed mind and going against the spirit of fair play.

“The referee had a fixed mind and that is not the spirit of the game. It is disappointing that we out because of officiating. It was terrible. We need to work as Africans and play football as Africans and not to punish other teams,” he said.

Even though the Kenyan champions were thrown out, Matano was full of praises for the bravery in which they played with in Sfax. The former AFC Leopards observed that his charges were composed, and played their hearts out.

“I was impressed with the performance the boys had. We played like true champions but unfortunately, a mistake by the referee made the difference. We were organized and showed maturity in the game,” he noted.

Matano in the meantime called on his players to replicate the performance they had in the league and defend the title. Tusker who have two matches at hand did have the best title defence campaign as they had lost three out of their opening five matches.

“Our focus turns to the league matches now that we are out. I urge the players to maintain the spirit and attitude they had against Sfaxien in the league. I know we didn’t start well but there is still time to catch up with the others,” he added.