Khaberni - Fans of the Indonesian club Persib Bandung tried to attack the Saudi referee Majed Al-Shamrani after the match in which the team won against Ratchaburi from Thailand 1-0 in the AFC Champions League 2, protesting against the refereeing decisions witnessed during the match.
According to Indonesian reports, chaos erupted after the match as fans attacked the referee, throwing bottles and fireworks in protest against what were described as "controversial" decisions.
Despite Persib Bandung's victory with a score of 1-0, they were eliminated from the Asian tournament in the round of 16 because they lost the first leg match by three goals to none.
According to the network "tvonenews", the international Saudi referee annulled a goal by Persib and sent off their player William Barros in the first half, and was not firm in his decisions against the Thai team.
The report added: Fans also chanted "AFC mafia", and threw bottles and set off fireworks during the additional time of the second half. After the referee whistled the end of the match, some fans stormed the pitch aiming to target Majed Al-Shamrani, who was waiting to shake hands with players from both teams, as is customary in all matches.
The Indonesian network added in the report published on its website: Urgently, the organizers asked the referees to run towards the dressing room, and they secured the opposing team, and there was a commotion with some hits towards the opposing players in the corridor leading to the dressing room.
Persib Bandung’s coach poured out his anger on referee Majed Al-Shamrani, expressing his disappointment with the way the match was managed.
Coach Bojan Hodak believes that his team would have secured the qualification ticket if not for the red card shown by the referee against William Barros at the end of the first half, and said: The decision was unfair, unfortunately, I can’t say much, there is a lot to say, not just about that decision, but many other things.
According to Indonesian newspapers, Persib Bandung will submit an official protest to the Asian Football Confederation regarding the level of refereeing in the match.
