“Why is he doing that?” – Zico infuriated by referee penalty decision in AFC loss

NAIROBI, Kenya, May 02 – “Why is he doing that?” KCB head coach Zedekiah Otieno wondered as he shook his head, trying to replay the decision to give AFC Leopards what he termed as a ‘dubious’ penalty in their 2-1 defeat at the hands of Ingwe on Sunday.

Leopards were leading 1-0 when a surprise call by referee Anthony Juma Ogwayo saw them handed a spotkick in the 43^rd minute after keeper David Okello was adjudged to have fouled Victor Omune, a decision that even caught the striker by surprise.

“What is bad is that this same referee had a controversy in the match between Tusker and Gor. Why is he doing that? There is absolutely no contact in the box but anyway at the end of the day it is his decision but I don’t know why he is doing that and yet he is a FIFA referee. Sometimes you fail to understand,” a dejected Otieno said.

He added; “That decision changed the momentum of the game because when a team is leading 1-0, you are still fighting because you know it is something you can get. But then he gives a dubious penalty to make it 2-0 and from there it is an uphill task.”

But, he said, the loss was all on his players as they failed to take their chances, including a second half penalty taken by Sidney Lokale and saved by Levis Opiyo.

He says the team’s biggest undoing has been their failure to take their chances, and this has come down to haunt them badly.

“We are playing well and getting opportunities at crucial moments but we fail to convert. It is like that in football, when you don’t take your chances, you are punished. At this moment it is all about the individuals and not the coach,” Otieno added.

Meanwhile, the coach has admitted they find themselves at a difficult place with six rounds of matches left and their hopes of a top three finish just like season seemingly difficult.

They have won only once in the last 13 matches and dropped to eighth in the standings with a third consecutive defeat.

“It is really difficult. We find ourselves ina  tough situation because we didn’t expect this when we started the season. We are however working to try and make sure we improve in our matches,” he stated.