Kotoko fans unhappy with penalty decision in Legon Cities game
Referee Kennedy Padi banned by GFA
Former Asante Kotoko forward Charles Taylor has criticized the attitude of the players in their 3-1 defeat to Legon Cities in matchday 26 of the 2021/2022 Ghana Premier League season.
Taylor said on Angel TV he was appalled by the conduct of the players after the referee whistled for a penalty against them.
Charles Taylor observed that the players, led by captain Imoro Ibrahim charged on the referee and his assistant in protest of their decision.
He said such attitudes could put them in the bad books of referees who would not mind them giving them cards.
Charles Taylor singled out captain Imoro for blame, explaining that he should have shown calm head and controlled his colleagues.
He proposed that the best way of handling the situation was for the captain to speak to the referee and make his protest known instead of charging on him.
On the penalty, Charles Taylor said he initially had doubts about the decision of the referee but had a mind after watching the incident repeatedly.
He noted during the replays that the Kotoko defender tripped the left leg of the Legon Cities attacker and thus deserved to be punished.
He however urged the players to keep their calm and remain determined as they were in the early part of the season.
"I want to tell the Kotoko players to be careful. Their behaviour on the pitch is unprofessional. How they rush on referees is very bad. If you are not careful, you’d lose focus. I initially thought it was not a penalty but upon replay I realized that there was contact and the defender tripped the player.
“But you look at how they rushed to referee and it is not good. As a captain in such situations, you need to show cool head and speak to the referee. It was a clear penalty but the attitude of Kotoko players was bad. A captain of Kotoko should behave better than that. They should keep the determination and focus,” he said.
Kotoko suffered a shocking 3-1 defeat to Legon Cities at the Baba Yara Stadium on Sunday, denting their hopes of wrapping up the league title.
Kotoko are still leading the league table with 52points while Legon Cities occupy the
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