Madjid Bougherra had a reputation at Rangers for being a bit of an animal … not much has changed.
They say it is swings and roundabouts; that justice is eventually served through the realms of karma and all that mumbo jumbo.
Tell that to the Burkina Faso national football team after yesterday evening.
They travelled to Blida to take on Algeria in a hostile atmosphere yesterday – with qualification for their first ever World Cup in their sights.
Leading 3-2 from the first leg, the teams went in level 0-0 at half time – job done so far.
And they must have felt that things were about to get even easier for them when they saw former Rangers defender Madjid Bougherra fly through the air with what could have been a leg-breaking challenge. The Lekhwiya centre-back launched off the ground and flew in studs showing on to Kuban Krasnodar midfielder Charles Kabore just after the restart – with a foul that clearly warranted a red-card…
But to everyone’s amazement the Senegalese referee Badara Diatta – who is on the shortlist to referee at next summer’s World Cup – only brandished a yellow.
If Kabore had his leg planted in the ground there is little doubt that he would have broken his leg from the challenge, and the decision not to send him off was frankly amazing.
To rub salt in the wounds for the poor Burkina Faso faithful – four minutes later Bougherra scored the winning goal that sent the Desert Foxes to Brazil and The Stallions galloping home.
No justice…
image: © jbagley
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