Dutch referee Danny Makkelie has offered Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal an apology after disallowing the striker’s goal against Serbia.
Portugal had to settle for a 2-2 draw in their 2022 World Cup qualifying clash after he denied Ronaldo a last-gasp winner by the match officials.
Replays showed that the Juventus striker’s shot had crossed the line before Aleksandar Mitrovic cleared the ball away. Still, Makkelie waved play on after consulting with his linesman, which he has now admitted was the wrong decision.
Referee apologizes to Ronaldo after bad decisions
Speaking to Portuguese publication ‘A Bola’, Makkelie said, “As per FIFA’s policies, all I can say is that I apologised to the national coach, Fernando Santos, and the Portuguese team for what happened.”
“As a referee team, we always work hard to make good decisions. When we are in the news in this manner, it doesn’t make us happy at all.”
Portugal are currently second in the pool on goal difference behind Serbia.
