(REUTERS) – Bahrain’s 10-0 win over Indonesia in a World Cup qualifier on Wednesday is to be examined by FIFA’s security department.
“Given the unusual outcome in relation to the results-expectation and head-to-head history, and in the interests of maintaining unequivocal confidence in our game, FIFA Security will conduct a routine examination of this game and its result,” FIFA said in a statement. Bahrain had needed a nine-goal win in the Asian Group E match, combined with a defeat for Qatar in Iran, to progress to the next stage of the region’s World Cup qualifying competition.
Qatar went through, however, when an 86th-minute goal gave them a 2-2 draw in Iran to clinch second place in the group at Bahrain’s expense.
Indonesia, already eliminated, fielded a weakened team as a number of their top players had been suspended by their own federation and had goalkeeper Samsidar sent off after just three minutes, with Ismail Abdullahatif converting the resulting penalty.
That was one of four spot-kicks awarded to Bahrain in the match – Abdullahatif missed the second, Mahmood Abuldrahman scored the third, before Mohammed Al Tayeb spurned the last late on with his side nine goals ahead.
Abdullahatif scored twice, as did Abdulrahman, with both Sayed Ebrahim and Al Tayeb notching hat-tricks.
According to FIFA’s records, the two sides had met six times before with two wins apiece and two draws. Bahrain had not previously won by more than two goals.
Indonesian football has recently been in turmoil and the country came close to international suspension last year.
Djohar Arifin Husin, a former secretary-general of the Indonesian Sports Committee, was elected head of the FA (PSSI) last year, defeating two other candidates in elections ordered by FIFA.
Previous elections had failed amid chaotic scenes and FIFA appointed a committee last year to organise the election, as their previous PSSI president, Nurdin Halid, was jailed in 2007 for misusing funds but continued to run the FA from his cell.