The secret lies in Tawney: a refereeing surprise in the Al-Ahli and Al-Khaleej match | Goal.com

Published on 24 Oct 2026 | Reading time: 2 minutes

Al-Ahli thrashed Al-Khaleej 4-1 in the eleventh round of the Saudi Roshn Pro League, but one early incident flung the door wide open to refereeing controversy. The opener came through Englishman Ivan Toney, and objections flew over whether it should have stood.

Doubts did not stop at the timing of the goal in the eleventh minute. A Video Assistant Referee "VAR" review ate up several minutes before Saudi referee Abdullah Al-Shahri confirmed it, a decision that raised two questions: interference from an Al-Ahli player in an offside position, and a suspected physical contact between Toney and Al-Khaleej defender Mohammed Khabrani.

Al-Khaleej coach Jose Gomes protested, and he was not alone. Several refereeing voices argued the goal should have been chalked off. Among them was former international referee Saad Al-Kathiri, the refereeing analyst for "Al-Jazirah" newspaper, who reckoned the decision to award it was wrong.

According to Al-Kathiri, the incident warranted disallowing the goal and flagging offside against the Al-Ahli player involved. The player obstructed the Al-Khaleej defender and denied him the chance to cover properly. In his view, that was enough influence from an offside player for the goal to be scrapped.

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Abdullah Al-Shahri saw it differently. After reviewing the incident on the video technology screen, he judged the contact to be nothing more than a natural physical challenge, stuck to his decision and confirmed the goal for Al-Ahli.

So the early goal became a flashpoint between the referee's call on the pitch and Al-Kathiri's verdict, an incident that bundled together a suspected offside and physical contact. Al-Ahli cruised on to their four goals to one win. Toney grabbed a brace to take his tally to 13 goals and the top of the Roshn League scoring charts.

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