AFC Asian Cup: Journalists banned for confronting Iraq coach after loss to Jordan, national team condemns conduct

Iraq conceded two goals in second-half stoppage time to get eliminated by lower-ranked Jordan at the Khalifa International Stadium on Monday.

Iraq coach Jesus Casas Garcia was shouted at by some reporters from the country, after the side’s loss to Jordan in the Asian Cup knockouts. | Photo Credit: REUTERS

The Asian Football Confederation banned “aggressive” journalists who confronted Iraq’s coach Jesus Casas following his team’s 3-2 loss to Jordan in the round of 16 of the Asian Cup.

Iraq conceded two goals in second-half stoppage time to get eliminated by lower-ranked Jordan at the Khalifa International Stadium on Monday.

In the post-match press conference, some Iraqi reporters shouted at the Spaniard, and surrounded him in the room, before being ushered out by security.

“The AFC strongly condemns any type of unruly and aggressive behaviour and takes a zero-tolerance stance against such actions,” the competition’s governing body said.

The AFC “have taken the swift decision to bar the responsible individuals from covering not only the Asian Cup (in) Qatar but also future AFC tournaments”, it added in the statement.

The Iraqi national team also released a statement, condemning the conduct of the journalists at the press conference.

“These events have no connection to the authentic Iraqi media that is known for its honourable positions, and the behaviour that took place is a black mark in Iraqi media history, caused by certain names that took advantage of their unexpected presence at the conference,” it said in a statement.

“We denounce the blatant and abhorrent behaviour that occurred against the coach, and we confirm that we have decided not to deal with these media personnel who seek to cause chaos in the future, and we will follow legal methods to restore the coach’s reputation and approach the relevant authorities to explain what happened,” it added.

RELATED: Why was Aymen Hussein sent off during Iraq vs Jordan round of 16 match?

The performance of Iranian-Australian referee Alireza Faghani came under the spotlight for his decision to send off Aymen Hussein for over-celebrating.

The striker thought he had won the game for Iraq with his goal in the 76th minute and sat on the ground mimicking eating -- just as the Jordan players had after scoring. Hussein was given a yellow card for it and sent off, and Jordan went on to score twice to reach the quarterfinals.

Angry Iraq fans rounded on Faghani on social media.

The AFC did not name him but said in the same statement that “we strongly condemn any form of threat, harassment, or disclosure of personal information targeting our referees, players, officials and all stakeholders”.