Morocco star Youssef En-Nesyri questions refereeing after Al Ittihad’s stalemate against Al-Kholoud

Moroccan international Youssef En-Nesyri has criticised some of the refereeing decisions during Al-Ittihad Jeddah’s 1-1 draw with Al-Kholoud in their opening Saudi Professional League match on Saturday.

The Al-Ittihad striker believes both his team’s mistakes and controversial refereeing decisions contributed to their failure to secure victory, particularly after Portuguese midfielder Danilo Pereira was sent off in the second half.

En-Nesyri opened the scoring shortly before half-time, rising brilliantly to meet Ahmed Al-Jalidan’s cross before directing a powerful header into the Al-Kholoud net.

The lead, however, did not last. Al-Kholoud restored parity in the 52nd minute through Julen Dominguez, setting up a tense final period for both sides.

Al-Ittihad’s problems were compounded six minutes later when Pereira was shown a red card following a VAR review, leaving the visitors to play the remainder of the match with ten men.

Speaking after the game, En-Nesyri questioned the decision to dismiss his Portuguese teammate, insisting that he did not believe the red card was deserved.

The Moroccan forward argued that the sending-off had a significant impact on the balance of the contest and made it considerably more difficult for Al-Ittihad to regain the lead.

Despite their numerical disadvantage, Al-Ittihad continued pushing for a second goal and created pressure in the closing stages.

However, they were unable to find a decisive breakthrough as Al-Kholoud held on for a point.

En-Nesyri acknowledged that his team also made mistakes during the encounter but maintained that the refereeing decisions played a role in the outcome.

Nevertheless, the Moroccan remained positive about Al-Ittihad’s prospects for the season and called for the team to remain focused on the matches ahead.

He praised his teammates for their efforts, particularly given that it was their first league fixture, and stressed the importance of learning from their mistakes.

The draw leaves both teams with one point from their opening game, while Al-Ittihad will now turn their attention to the next round as they seek their first victory of the campaign.

On a personal level, En-Nesyri can take confidence from his performance. The Moroccan striker was one of Al-Ittihad’s biggest attacking threats throughout the match and marked his league debut with an important goal.

The forward will now hope to build on that performance as Al-Ittihad look to improve their results and mount a stronger challenge in the Saudi Professional League.