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Striker Ivan Toney and his Al Ahli teammates have publicly criticized the officiating work in the Saudi Pro League, suggesting that referees may be influencing the title race in favor of Cristiano Ronaldo and Al Nassr.
The controversy erupted following Al Ahli's 1-1 draw against Al Fayha on April 8. Despite Toney scoring his 27th goal of a prolific campaign, Al Ahli were unable to secure the win. The result leaves them in third place with 66 points, trailing second-place Al Nassr by four points, while having already played one more game than the other.
In the post-match interview, Toney expressed his disbelief over what he described as "clear as day" penalties that were not awarded to his side.
"I don’t know what more you want him to do, if you pick the ball up with two hands are you going to give a penalty or not?" Toney said, as quoted by Daily Mail. "When we tried to talk to the referee, he told us to focus on the AFC [Champions League]. How can the referee say this? We are talking about now and he is saying to focus on the AFC."
When asked who he believed stood to benefit from these decisions, Toney laughed and replied, "We know who, who are we chasing?"
While he stopped commenting further to avoid potential sanctions, media outlets have widely interpreted his comments as a direct reference to Al Nassr, Ronaldo’s club.
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Al Alhi striker Ivan Toney and Al Nassr captain Cristiano Ronaldo. Photos courtesy of Al Alhi, Al Nassr |
Toney also took his frustration to social media.
"It's actually crazy how you can miss things like this in crucial moments or chose to turn a blind eye. It's clear what is being influenced here," he wrote on Instagram. "I am probably the bad guy for speaking some truths and pointing out questionable decisions or s*** refereeing."
Toney's teammate Galeno also accused league organizers of favoring a specific club.
"Hand over the trophy, that's what they want, they want to knock us out of the championship by any means necessary, they want to hand the trophy to one person, a total lack of respect for our club," he wrote on X.
Al Ahli have since issued a formal statement to the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF), expressing deep dissatisfaction with the officiating. The club has formally requested access to the audio recordings between the referee and the VAR room, arguing that these errors have directly impacted their position in the title race.
The SAFF confirmed on April 10 that specialized committees have begun reviewing the match. In a statement, the federation emphasized that maintaining the integrity of the competition is a top priority and that they are committed to transparency in handling the dispute.
Ronaldo had expressed frustrations with the league earlier this year. In February, the 41-year-old superstar reportedly questioned the competitive balance of the league, specifically noting how Al Hilal was able to mobilize massive resources to sign French superstar Karim Benzema while other clubs backed by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) faced financial limitations.
