OUGADOUGOU: Burkina Faso have appealed to FIFA for the overturning of the 1-0 defeat by Algeria in midweek which sent the North Africans through to the World Cup finals in Brazil.

Madjid Bougherra scored the decisive goal in Blida but the Burkinabe federation has claimed that the Algerian captain should not have been played because of two yellow cards in previous games.

Burkina Faso claims to have submitted the protest shortly before the game. They had won the first leg 3-2 but lost the tie on the away goals rule.

A spokesman claimed that Bougherra had been booked in Algeria’s 1-0 win over Mali on September 10 and then again in the first leg of the final play-off.

FIFA’s official match report does not indicate a second caution and the Zambian referee, Janny Sikazwe, was reported by local media as having insisted the report is correct.

Burkina Faso, also complaining that Senegalese referee Badara Diatta did not allow four minutes’ stoppage time, wants FIFA to quash the original result and award them the match by a 3-0 walkover. That would send them, rather than Algeria, to Brazil.

Earlier in African qualifying, Cape Verde were denied a place in the final round of play-offs after FIFA ruled they had used an ineligible player in a crucial group win over Tunisia.

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