An Israeli footballer was sensationally sent off last night after a referee decided his trademark goal celebration looked like something far more sinister than a simple game of pool.
Sayed Abu Farchi had just headed Israel level against Austria in their Nations League clash in Linz when he raced to the corner flag, yanked it from the ground and dropped to one knee.
What followed looked, to many watching, like a classic cue-and-ball motion. The 20-year-old Colorado Rapids striker has used the same celebration before. His manager later confirmed it.
Bulgarian official Georgi Kabakov saw something else. Already on a yellow card from four minutes earlier, Abu Farchi was shown a second booking and given his marching orders.
Israel, reduced to ten men with the score at 1-1, collapsed late on. Austria scored twice after the 90th minute to win 3-1.
Israel boss Ran Ben-Shimon was left bewildered. He said Abu Farchi has performed the exact same celebration at club level without punishment. "I've seen it before, and everyone can check," he told reporters. "When this young player scores... he celebrates in the same situation again and again."
The incident immediately split opinion. Some reports rushed to call it a gun gesture. Others, including Austrian broadcaster ORF, noted it looked more like a billiards shot. One outlet later issued a correction stating the player had previously described it as a snooker celebration.
Laws of the Game allow referees to caution players for excessive or provocative celebrations. Removing a corner flag can also attract a booking. But critics argued Kabakov reached for the harshest interpretation possible at a politically charged fixture.
Abu Farchi, an Arab-Israeli from Baqa al-Gharbiyye who recently moved to MLS, looked stunned as he left the pitch. Teammates remonstrated with the referee.
Austria took full advantage. Phillipp Mwene and Sasa Kalajdzic scored in stoppage time to snatch all three points.
Whether it was a pool cue, a snooker shot or something else entirely, the decision left Israel a man down at a critical moment. For many fans, it looked less like justice and more like a referee seeing what he wanted to see.
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