Here are my thoughts on the decision by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to take the tournament trophy from Senegal and award it to Morocco. Good People, there is no ambiguity here: CAF is wrong, completely and unequivocally.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has stripped Senegal of its Africa Cup of Nations title and awarded the championship to Morocco, following a dramatic and disputed final that has now escalated into a legal battle.
In a statement released Tuesday, CAF said Senegal had forfeited the match after players temporarily left the pitch in protest during the closing stages of the game. The governing body ruled that the result would be recorded as a 3-0 victory for Morocco, overturning Senegal’s 1-0 win secured after extra time.
The decision has triggered a sharp backlash from Senegal’s football authorities, who have vowed to challenge the ruling at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne.
I may not have been a great footballer, but back at Secondary Technical School, Ovim, I was the fan-in-chief among my classmates. Nicknamed “Sausa,” I analyzed games and offered commentary, even though I never made the team. One lesson our coach, Mr. Udeagu Snr, always emphasized was this: the referee holds the ultimate authority and must be respected if you do not want to lose the match.
In this case, the match was restarted and eventually completed, despite the earlier disruption. Yes, the Senegalese team may have left the pitch at some point, but they returned and finished the game. That is what matters.
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The referee is, in effect, the supreme authority on the field, the final arbiter. Once the match was concluded under his authority, that result should stand. CAF’s appeal committee should recognize this and refrain from overturning what was decided on the pitch. All the rules should consider that the match was completed on the pitch.
Simply put, this trophy belongs to Senegal because the game was played to completion. We must avoid technicalities in our beautiful game.
I am Sausa,
ex-football strategist, Secondary Technical School Ovim Abia State
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