The Coach of FC Zamfara of Gusau, Alhassan Muhammed, has alleged that club sides in the country do give referees money to win matches. Muhammed told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ilorin on Sunday while reacting to his team's 1-4 loss to Kwara United on Saturday that it was the centre referee that helped them to win. "In matches, you give referees money and you don't give to your players. There is no team in Nigeria that does not give referees money; but I accept that when you don't have much, you give little.

"All Nigerian teams and referees do this but we can still improve. Let us join hands to call on these referees to improve. "If at the African Cup of Nations, we have referees from Togo and Guinea Bissau officiating and no one from Nigeria, it means we have problems.

"The game is improving, the coaches are trying their best but the officiating is bad because we are playing for referees," Muhammed said. The coach apologised to soccer fans over the unsporting behaviour of the FC Zamfara fans when they hosted Kwara United in Week 7 of the Nigeria Nationwide League (NNL) encounter.

Reacting to the issue, the President of Nigeria Referees Association, Mr Tade Azeez, asked the FC Zamfara coach to name any referee he has given money to. "He should be able to prove that he has given money to any referee, you should ask him. "I don't know the kind of reaction you want me to give, if he has done it, Let him establish what he has said. "If he has given to anyone, let him name the person and you will see what I will do," Azeez said.