Did the referee make a mistake by sending off Vietnam U20 goalkeeper?

Vietnam U20’s late red card may have followed an earlier offside that the referee missed.

In the fourth minute of stoppage time, goalkeeper Phan Dinh Bach moved forward to join an attack. Palestine won possession and launched a quick counterattack. Hamade carried the ball beyond the halfway line before passing to Nashashibi.

Bach raced back and made a strong challenge from behind, sending Nashashibi almost into the air. Saudi referee Sami Al-Ismail immediately blew his whistle and showed Bach a red card.

But the replay appeared to show Nashashibi in an offside position when Hamade released the ball. A Vietnamese FIFA referee told Tuoi Tre after the match that the offside was clear and that the officiating team had made a mistake. The referee said an attacking player is onside only when at least two opposing defenders are between him and the goal.

The same referee said Bach’s red card would have been justified if Nashashibi had been onside, because the goalkeeper’s challenge attempted to stop a scoring opportunity. However, the apparent offside came before Bach’s foul, leaving Vietnam disadvantaged in the 2-1 defeat.

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This was clearly offside, and the officiating team made a mistake.