Referee Victor Gomes has defended his handling of Mohamed Salah during last weekend's Africa Cup of Nations final following his sarcastic gesture directed towards the Liverpool forward.
Salah was unable to fire the Pharaohs to victory in Sunday's showpiece fixture in Cameroon and was unable to pose many threats during the first half as Senegal attempted to stamp their authority on proceedings.
The Liverpool forward then allowed his frustration to get the better of him in the 38th minute of the match after his Egyptian team-mate Hamdi Fathi was brandished a yellow card.
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Protesting to Gomes that the wrong decision had been reached, the South African official responded by offering his cards and whistle to Salah in humorous fashion.
Referees are often subjected to verbal abuse from players on the pitch in the modern game, but Gomes has admitted he wasn't going to stand for such antics.
"I respect the players that I officiate with and I don’t like to talk about the decisions I make on the field,” he said, as quoted by Sport24 .
“However, I do like to highlight some points for educational purposes and I also believe we have a responsibility to report positively on football matters so that our work is understood.
“Football has evolved tremendously and so have the players, who are highly respected and paid. Refereeing also has to evolve in that manner.
“We can’t stick to the old adage of officiating in a set way and style. All I can say is that on Sunday, I chose to manage a top-class player in a way I thought it would be deemed appropriate and responsible.
“Football was the ultimate winner on the day.”
Salah has since returned to Merseyside after his AFCON final setback and was deployed as a second half substitute during the Reds' 2-0 win over Leicester City last night.
The Premier League top scorer sent an effort crashing onto the bar not long after entering the field of play and was denied what seemed a reasonable claim for a penalty late on in proceedings.
