Scotland left frustrated by referee decisions in Morocco defeat
Scotland fell 1-0 to Morocco, feeling aggrieved by two penalty appeals not given and a potential red card incident that only resulted in a yellow.
Scotland's football team suffered a 1-0 defeat to Morocco on Tuesday, but the match was overshadowed by controversial refereeing decisions. Morocco took the lead after just 70 seconds through Ismael Saibari, and it looked like a long night for the Scots, who had beaten Haiti 1-0 in their opener. However, Scotland grew into the game and felt they should have been awarded two second-half penalties.
Penalty claims John McGinn and Scott McTominay both went down in the area, but referee Tantashev waved play on. ITV pundit Unkel commented on the McTominay incident: "I think it is a penalty kick. The referee is known for tolerating a higher level of physical contact but you don't need a lot to give a penalty. It's a simple foul, there's contact at the knee position and there's another angle that suggests there might be a step on the left boot."
Scotland manager Steve Clarke felt the earlier challenge on McGinn was more clear-cut. "I thought the John McGinn one was more a penalty [than the Scott McTominay one]. On another day somebody could give that."
Red card incident Clarke also questioned the decision to only show a yellow card to Moroccan defender Issa Diop for a foul on Che Adams in the first half, when Adams was clean through on goal. "It's the same with the yellow card for the defender when Che Adams is going clean through on goals. On another day that could be a red," Clarke said.
The defeat leaves Scotland with work to do in the tournament after their opening win against Haiti.
