Sadd coach Ferreira unhappy with VAR decisions

Doha: Al Sadd coach Jesualdo Ferreira was disappointed with their defeat to Al Duhail SC in the Emir Cup semifinal and blamed the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) for the outcome of the match.

Sadd had matched Duhail in the first half and even earned a penalty which was reverted after VAR.

But a harsh red card to Abdulkarimhassan at the end of halftime — also through VAR — saw Sadd go down to 10 men and despite their best efforts, they could not stop Duhail from winning the game.

“I refuse to talk about the game because it was not as everyone expected, and the first half was more or less equal,” said Ferreira.

“If we did not have the video technique, we would not have a red card and we would also have a penalty for Hassan Al Haidous,” said the Portuguese coach.

Ferreira was of the opinion that Abdulkarim’s foul only deserved a yellow and the red was too harsh.

“It is very sad because we lost to Duhail two consecutive times because of VAR, and without it, we would have another situation in the Qatar Cup and Emir Cup.

“The referee has to decide upon what he saw and not because of the pressure of the players. The Qatari referees are distinguished, but pressure from abroad affects them. They must be free to make decisions and not to comply outside the pitch,” said Ferreira. “The last season was much better for us than this season, and this season we have just won the Sheikh Jassim Cup, and we have to work very hard to achieve a positive result and move into the quarterfinals of the Champions League.”

Sadd take on Saudi Arabian side Al Ahli in Jeddah on Monday and they need to recover from the emotional and physical strain of the painful loss if they are to progress in the continental competition.