TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — The Japanese referee whose decisions caused a storm of controversy at last year’s World Cup has admitted he is “still learning” after locking horns with a J-League player, local media reported yesterday.

Yuichi Nishimura, who made headlines for awarding Brazil a soft penalty in their World Cup opener against Croatia, incurred the wrath of former Japan international Masashi Oguro after waving away penalty claims during a pre-season game this week.

Tempers flared after Ogura fumed that Nishimura, a polarising figure among Japanese players and fans with a reputation for awarding questionable penalties, had missed a clear handball in first-half stoppage time. The Kyoto striker was still seething at the final whistle.

After a pow-wow between the player and the controversial official, Nishimura admitted that “sometimes players are right”.

Having stubbornly defended his decision to award host Brazil a spot kick after Fred flopped to the turf as if shot by a sniper at the World Cup, Nishimura adopted a more conciliatory approach after his latest, albeit less high-profile, brush with controversy.

“My feeling was that it wasn’t an intentional handball,” Nishimura told Japan’s Nikkan Sports daily. “Oguro felt the defender couldn’t get to the ball in time so he raised his hand. Sometimes the player’s opinion is the correct one.

“In official matches, the referee’s call is final, but at a pre-season camp referees are learning too,” he added. “I’ve been enlightened.”

Oguro responded: “Mr Nishimura says he’s been enlightened — but I’m just glad this wasn’t a competitive match.”

Social media lit up after Nishimura’s World Cup display and the 42-year-old subsequently had a scrape with angry Croatia fans at the airport following Brazil’s 3-1 victory. He had attempted to blend in with passengers by dressing casually, only for volunteers to blow his cover by holding up a greeting sign for him.

Nishimura has come under fire in other major competitions. At the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, he was shoved by Angola players during an ill-tempered quarter-final with Egypt, but failed to send any of them off, and did not feature in the rest of the tournament.

In 2010, Congolese fans, incensed at his performance in a Club World Cup game, took revenge by vandalising a Chinese restaurant in their country.

Asian refereeing standards were a hot topic once again at last month’s Asian Cup in Australia after some bumbling officiating with Iran coach Carlos Queiroz and Japan midfielder Keisuke Honda being slapped with fines for complaining about decisions.