Al Ahly club submitted an official complaint to CAF against Issa Sy, the referee of the match against Tunisian club Esperance in the first leg of the CAF Champions League quarter-finals.

Al Ahly lost to Esperance with a score of 1-0 in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals.

Al Ahly said in an official statement issued today, Tuesday: "The club sent a complaint to the Confederation of African Football against the Senegalese referee Issa Sy, who officiated the Al Ahly vs. Esperance match in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals."

He added: "The complaint stated that this is not the first time this referee has committed numerous impactful errors against the Al Ahly team. Previously, during his management of the Al Ahly match against Burundi's Eagle Noir in the second leg of the Round of 32 in Cairo, he expelled the team's striker, Gradishar, without any wrongdoing. Some of his decisions contradicted reality and almost affected the outcome of the match."

He continued: "In the last match, the Senegalese referee did not provide protection for Al-Ahly players on the field from the opposing players and did not issue the cards that these situations warranted. Moreover, he did not award a clear penalty for Al-Ahly's striker Ashraf Ben Sharqi after he was pulled by a defender from Esperance inside the penalty area, and this was further aided by the VAR referee's disregard."

The Al-Ahly statement continued: "Meanwhile, Issa Si awarded an incorrect penalty to the opponent, especially since the ball hit the shoulder of the Al-Ahly player and not his hand. Furthermore, the VAR referee called Issa Si to review the play after a long period."

The Red Club's statement concluded: "The club called for the necessary legal actions to be taken regarding these incidents and for elite referees to be assigned to knockout matches to protect the integrity of African competitions."