Morocco’s World Cup fairytale came to an end on Wednesday night but the country’s FA was not happy with the man in the middle.
France sealed their place in Sunday’s final against Argentina after goals from Theo Hernandez and Randal Kolo Muani earned them a 2-0 victory in Qatar but Morocco felt that they should have had a penalty whilst the match was just 1-0.
The incident in question involved Theo Hernandez and Moroccan winger Sofiane Boufal, who collided inside the France penalty area and resulted in Boufal being booked by referee Cesar Ramos.
Following their semi-final clash, Morocco’s FA have now expressed their anger over some of the decisions made by the Mexican referee and have lodged a complaint to FIFA.
A statement from the Royal Moroccan Football Federation read via Sportbible: “The Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) strongly protested against the arbitration of the Morocco-France match officiated by Mr. Cesar Arturo Ramos. To this end, the FRMF sent a letter to the competent body in which it returns to the arbitration situation which deprived the Moroccan selection of two indisputable penalties in the opinion of several arbitration specialists.
“The FRMF also expressed its great astonishment that the Video Assistance to Arbitration (VAR) system did not react to these arbitration situations. The FRMF recalls that it will spare no effort to defend and preserve the rights of the National Selections by advocating fairness in arbitration and by denouncing these arbitration decisions taken during this semi-final confrontation of the World Cup. of FIFA Qatar 2022.”
Despite Wednesday’s result against France, Morocco can be super proud of their team, and their efforts in Qatar will inspire a whole generation of footballers, not just in their country but Africa as a whole.