The Indonesian National Team Officially Protested To The AFC About Iraq's Second Goal

The Indonesian national team official protested Iraq's second goal (doc. PSSI).

JAKARTA - The Indonesian national team lost to Iraq 1-3 in the inaugural match of Group D of the 2023 Asian Cup at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium, Monday, January 15, 2023. The match brought controversy.

Iraq's second goal scored by Osama Rashid in first-half injury time was considered invalid. Footage shows Mohanad Ali was in an offside position before the goal.

However, after the video assistant referee (VAR) examination, the goal was still passed.

Therefore, the Indonesian national team through the team manager, Endri Erawan, officially protested to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) regarding the performance of referee Tantashev Ilgiz.

"Of course we are disappointed. After the match, we officially protested strongly to the AFC regarding the ratification of Iraq's second goal. We have officially sent a protest form and submitted it directly to the match commissioner after the match," said Endri.

"Kami tahu protes ini tidak akan mengubah hasil pertandingan. Namun, setidaknya untuk pertandingan-pertandingan di ajang Piala Asia 2023 ini, para wasit/set pertandingan bisa lebih baik lagi dalam mengambil keputusan," tutur pria yang juga anggota Komite Eksekutif (Exco) PSSI tersebut.

Meanwhile, Marselino Ferdinand was also disappointed with this result. Moreover, Iraq's second goal damaged the moment of the revival of the Indonesian national team.

"We were unlucky in this inaugural game. All the players have struggled hard and maximally. However, there are some controversies from the referee who shouldn't have scored, but goals," said Marselino.

The Indonesian national team is indeed rising after scoring a 1-1 equalizer goal through Marselino Ferdinand in the 37th minute. At that time, the Garuda Squad appeared bolder and more motivated.

Unfortunately, Iraq's controversial goal damaged the mentality of the Indonesian national team. Shin Tae-yong admitted that Iraq's second goal destroyed the game of his team which was in high spirits.

The high determination had to be damaged by the controversial decision of the referee from Uzbekistan.

The Indonesian vs Iraq national team match is an important note. According to Shin Tae-yong, the referee's leadership lowered the prestige of the 2023 Asian Cup which he said was the grandest and most modern in tournament history.

Furthermore, the Indonesian national team will face Vietnam on Friday (19/1/2024) and Japan on January 24, 2024. These two remaining matches are the target points for the Garuda Squad to maintain the opportunity to qualify for the last 16 of the 2023 Asian Cup.