It’s hard to imagine the level of pressure ready to fall on his shoulders. CAF on Tuesday made official the name of the referee who will be responsible for supervising the debates this Wednesday, January 14 during the semi-final between Nigeria and Morocco, the organizing country of the competition very close to returning to the CAN final for the first time since 2004. This is the Ghanaian Daniel Nii Ayi Laryea, a veteran of African refereeing at the age of 38.
While the Atlas Lions have frequently been accused by their detractors of benefiting from in-house arbitration during this 2025 edition, the performance of the Accra native will inevitably be closely scrutinized this Wednesday in a boiling Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium. The latter has only officiated once since the start of the tournament, during the group match between Algeria and Burkina Faso, on Sunday December 28 (1-0). His refereeing had caused a lot of ink to be spilled and was at the origin of the controversial exit of Bertrand Traoré, the captain of the Étalons.
Accused of “screwing the match” by Bertrand Traoré
Believing that he should have benefited from a penalty during the first minutes of the game, the Sunderland striker was not kind in the interview. “I think there is a penalty for the first Algerian foul committed on me. But the referee won’t even check,” he denounced before losing his temper. “As luck would have it, when it’s Algeria, they confirm the penalty,” said Traoré in reference to the only goal of the match, scored from 11 meters by Riyad Mahrez. “It’s a shame for African football. There are beautiful stadiums, good supporters but the referees ruin the match! »
Since this incident, Mr. Laryea has no longer officiated as central referee during this CAN 2025. This Wednesday in Rabat, he will be assisted by the South African Zakhele Thusi Granville Siwela and the Lesothan Souru Phatsoane, while the Rwandan Samuel Uwikunda will officiate as fourth referee.
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