Young Africans SC has officially filed a complaint with the Confederation of African Football (CAF) after their loss and elimination from the Champions League quarter-finals against Mamelodi Sundowns on Friday, April 6th, in a penalty shootout. The match had ended in a goalless draw. The complaint to CAF is regarding a goal that appeared to be valid during the course of the match. Unfortunately, the referee did not consult the VAR, a fact that could have changed the outcome in favor of the Tanzanians.
In the complaint submitted to CAF, it states, ‘We, the undersigned, representing Young Africans Sports Club, hereby submit this complaint in accordance with Article XVI of the CAF Champions League Regulations. The complaint relates to a potential administrative error and a match-fixing incident during the quarter-final match between Mamelodi Sundowns and Young Africans Sports Club (Yanga) played on April 5, 2024, at Tshwane-Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, South Africa.’
The statement further describes the contentious action, ‘During the match, in the 57th minute, Young Africans Sports Club player Aziz Ki Stéphane (jersey number 10) scored a clear goal that was disallowed by the entire refereeing team led by Mr. Dahane Beida of Mauritania. Despite the availability of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology, Mr. Beida and his team, including Mr. Daniel Ayi (VAR Assistant Referee from Ghana) and Mr. Jerson Dos Santos (VAR Assistant from Angola), intentionally neglected to review the goal via VAR, disregarding the principles of fair play and justice in football.’
The Young Africans are therefore demanding, ‘In light of the aforementioned, we urge CAF to take appropriate corrective measures, which may include, but not be limited to, conducting a detailed review of match footage and VAR recordings, holding accountable any individuals found responsible for misconduct or negligence, implementing measures to prevent similar incidents in future matches, as well as any other remedies that you may consider fair and appropriate to award under rule XVI(3) of the CAF Champions League Regulations.’
