Shabab Al Ahli’s hopes of getting their AFC Champions League Elite semi-final against Machida Zelvia replayed have been extinguished.
The club had lodged an official protest with the tournament’s organisers after the match on Tuesday night ended in angry scenes.
Guilherme Bala thought he had equalised the scores at 1-1 in the third minute of stoppage time against the side from Japan.
However, the goal was ruled out after Shaun Evans, the Australian referee, had undertaken a video review.
In doing so, he controversially ruled that the throw in which restarted play before the move that led to the goal had taken place a fraction of a second before Machida had completed a substitution.
When he blew the final whistle moments later, Shabab Al Ahli’s players were understandably livid. A number of them surrounded Evans, who showed a red card to Hamad Almeqbaali, the goalkeeper.
As the referee was ushered down the tunnel by security staff, a fan from the small Shabab Al Ahli contingent threw a bottle of water in his direction.
In his post-match press conference, Paulo Sousa, the Shabab Al Ahli manager, said Evans had made a mistake, and had not been of sufficient quality to referee such a high-stakes fixture.
The Portuguese coach also said he was unsure whether the club would be able to protest the decision, but the administration went ahead with the complaint. They stayed in Jeddah while the case was being heard.
As per the rules of the competition, clubs are permitted to lodge protests with the match commissioner within two hours of the end of the game.
They must then follow up with a full report to the AFC’s general secretariat within 24 hours, as well as make a non-refundable payment of $1,000.
However, Article 60 of the regulations stipulates that “no protest shall be lodged relating to the referee's decisions regarding facts connected with play”.
“Such decisions are final and binding and not subject to appeal, unless otherwise stipulated in the AFC Disciplinary and Ethics Code,” the regulations state.
“The same applies to any potential issue concerning the use and/or operation of any goal-line technology and/or video assistant referee system.”
Despite that, it is understood a five-person competition committee did consider the protest, including the report and the audio of the conversation between the match officials.
However, it subsequently upheld the match result, with no official comment other than the statement that “the protest lodged by Shabab Al Ahli is dismissed”.
As such, Machida will contest Saturday’s final against Al Ahli Saudi at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium. Around 40,000 tickets have already been sold for the game, and it is expected to be a sell-out.
The winners of the competition will make $10 million in prize money, with the runners-up set to earn $4m. Shabab Al Ahli earned $600,000 for reaching the semi-finals.
Following the verdict, the UAE FA said it will continue to support Shabab Al Ahli, calling the AFC's decision "unfair".
"The UAE Football Association has reaffirmed its support for Shabab Al Ahli Club following the decision issued by the Asian Football Confederation's (AFC) Disciplinary and Ethics Committee regarding the club's protest stemming from the events that occurred during their match against Japan's Machida Zelvia in the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League," the governing body said in a statement.
"The Football Association confirms its continued support for Shabab Al Ahli Club in all measures it will take to ensure its rights are protected, while simultaneously rejecting the AFC's unfair decision.”
