The Red Devils’ coach Manuel Jose rushed towards Yasser Abdul-Raouf right after the final whistle to protest against his controversial decisions.

Assistant coach Hossam Al-Badri was equally unhappy with Abdul-Raouf’s performance.

“The referee tarnished the friendly atmosphere through his weird decisions,” Al-Badri told the post-match press conference.

“Almost all of his decisions went against us, I don’t know why.”

Television replays showed that Mauro Esposito’s first-half opener for Roma shouldn’t have stood after the ball crossed the byline in the build-up.

“(Brazilian full back) Cicinho admitted after the match that the ball crossed the line just before he whipped in his cross,” Ahli keeper Amir Abdul-Hamid said.

“He also told me that he was surprised that the referee allowed the goal.”

Ahli also protested against Abdul-Raouf’s decision to award Roma a late penalty after Sayed Moawad allegedly brought down Edgar Alvarez inside the area.

Chilean midfielder David Pizarro converted the resulting penalty, making it 3-0 for Luciano Spalletti’s men.

Past Problems

Ahli goalkeeping coach Ahmed Nagui said the match shouldn’t have been assigned to Abdul-Raouf.

“Problems always occur every time Abdul-Raouf officiate a match for us,” he told Ahli channel after the game.

“Given those past problems, why did Abdul-Raouf took charge of our friendly game against Roma?”

“The referee stirred tensions through his controversial and weird decisions,” Nagui added.