FIFA's Communications Director Markus Siegler said that the tackle of Everton striker Tim Cahill should have been a penalty, while Australia's Socceroos claim that the Egyptian referee admitted that he made a mistake by allowing Japan's goal.

In what was the first controversial match in terms of referee decisions, Markus Siegler said that he "would not be credible" if he didn't say that a mistake was made by the referee.

"I think there were no situations for penalties. We saw one, but it was a clear mistake of the referee," Siegler said at a press conference.

Everton striker Tim Cahill was already shown another yellow card before the incident, and he would have been sent off if the foul was given. Cahill went on to score two goals for the Socceroos and Australia won a crucial match.

The irony is that at the time of this writing, Ukraine's Adriy Shevchenko was wrongfully signalled offside, in what was a dangerous moment for Spain's defence...

Meanwhile, according to Reuters, the Socceroos claim that the Egyptian referee Essam Abd El Fatah admitted to them that his decision to allow Japan's goal, as Mark Schwarzer was pushed by Yanagisawa and lost his balance.

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