Whistles, Woes, and a Wobbly Day at the Saudi Pro League: Pereira Calls Out the Officials
16 January 2026
Is Al-Ittihad suffering from refereeing bias?
Match Context
Portuguese central defender Danilo Pereira of Al-Ittihad expressed sharp frustration with several refereeing calls after the team was defeated 1-0 by Al-Ettifaq in Week 16 of the Roshen Saudi Pro League.
That result left Al-Ittihad on 27 points in sixth place, while Al-Ettifaq sits two points behind on 25.
Pereira told the media after the game that he does not want to complain, but he feels referees are always against them, which saddens him.
He added that with other clubs, penalties are awarded normally, but it is hard to treat them with the same courtesy.
He concluded that they do not want to dwell on it, and that it is simply what they notice during matches.
Al-Ittihad have dropped five points in their last two games, drawing with Damac 1-1 and then losing to Al-Ettifaq, continuing the points bleed.
Final Reflections
Punchline 1: If referees wore glasses, they might finally see the obvious foul and stop pretending it didn’t happen.
Punchline 2: If bias were a goalkeeper, it would never let Pereira score — and the crowd would still have a good laugh at the memes.
