Ghanaian referee, Joseph Odartey Lamptey has apologized for his poor officiating in a match between South Africa and Senegal that got him banned for life by FIFA.
Lamptey ‘s errors in the 2018 World Cup qualifier which was won 2-1 by South Africa last November led to FIFA banning him for life and calling for a replay of the match.
South Africa, who placed fourth in the Group D standings, are scheduled to host third-placed Senegal in a rematch in November 2017. Lamptey has stated that he was not trying to
Lamptey has stated that he was not trying to favour South Africa’s Bafana Bafana, who were the home side at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane.
“I deeply love Senegal and I’m sorry. I can tell you that I felt deep pain after having done such an injustice against that country,” Lamptey told Senegal News Agency. “I really love that country.
My mistake [in the game] was never intentional. That can happen to you in your line of work as a journalist. “Right or wrong? It is truly a human error but never did I want to do something against Senegal for anybody’s interest,” he continued.
“When I came back from the match in South Africa, my wife kept asking me what I had done to the Senegalese people. I told her so many times that it was a huge [human] error that I made against a country I adore.”
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