Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi expressed his reluctance to comment on the penalty awarded to Orlando Pirates during Saturday’s Soweto Derby at FNB Stadium.

Nabi suggested that any criticism of the refereeing could result in further punishment for him, as he was just returning from a two-match suspension.

The match looked set for a goalless draw, the first since October 2017, when Pirates’ Relebohile Mofokeng appeared to be pulled back by Njabulo Blom inside the box. Although Bruce Bvuma made a save, referee Masixole Bambiso deemed it a penalty, a decision that seemed soft and ultimately allowed Pirates to secure their fourth consecutive derby win through Patrick Maswanganyi’s Panenka penalty.

“I’m not going to talk about these kinds of referees. You can analyze it in your studio and decide if it was a penalty or not,” Nabi told SuperSport TV after the game. “If I say anything, the referee gives me red cards. If you ask him about his family, it’s a red card. If you ask him how he is today, it’s a red card.”

Despite his reservations about the penalty decision, Nabi insisted that his team did not deserve to lose the match.

While acknowledging that a draw would have been a fair result, he continued to express his doubts about the penalty.

“I think the penalty, honestly, I think zero-zero was the correct score,” he said. “We didn’t deserve to lose this game.”

The loss leaves Chiefs in fifth place with 21 points after 15 matches.