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Al-Badwawi fends off player who cheers with him
Some players kick and shout at referees. Not Azizbek Haydarov from Uzbekistan. He’s jumping on the referee out of sheer joy to celebrate with him the 0-1 victory over Iran. But referee Ali Al-Badwawi from the United Arab Emirates wants nothing to do with it after he blew the final whistle in the World Cup 2014 qualification match between Iran and Uzbekistan. Al-Badwawi firmly fends off Haydarov and let him sheer somewhere else.
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Ravshan Irmatov with fantastic Asian refereeing
Ravshan Irmatov was the youngest referee in this World Cup in South Africa. But his age was no problem in his first big football tournament. Actually, the Uzbezkistan refree was one of the referees who surprised the World. The Fifa awarded his good performances with 5 WC matches and the semi-final between The Netherlands and Uruguay. Valdir Bicudo, blogging about refereeing for the Brazilian website Parana Online , and Jan ter Harmsel (me) interviewed him. He stayed at the referee headquarters of Kievits Kroon until the end of this World Cup and only two referees before him were allowed to officiate in five matches during one World Cup. Armando Archundia…