Ref must protect our players – Ethiopia coach

Ethiopia coach Sewnet Bishaw is pleading with the referee to protect his players and make fair decisions when they meet the robust Nigerian outfit in their last Group C match at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg today.

The Ethiopians are eager to bow out of the competition with their pride still intact following a humiliating 4-0 defeat at the hands of Burkina Faso on Friday.

“In my opinion the referees will be fair and, if not, they must be suspended for life. If there is any incident regarding bad refereeing and we lose the game, then the decision is not for us to make, but that of refereeing committee. But we are not complaining about the referee,” Bishaw said.

However, Super Eagles coach Stephen Keshi said: “I am not sure if I have players who are mean on the field. My players are not aggressive towards the players. If you replay our games, the referees could have reversed their decisions to give my players cards.

“Football is a contact sport and the referee is the one who decides whether the player is right or wrong. We just have to concentrate on our game and try to win three points.”