The Irish Football Association have accused FIFA of double standards for allowing the Arsenal-Sheffield United FA Cup tie to be replayed. IFA chief executive David Bowen said world football's governing body could throw the game into turmoil if they did not clarify their position.

FIFA gave the green light on Monday night to a match Arsenal again won 2-1. FIFA declared the re-match lawful under rule four of the FA Cup regulations, which states: "In any matter not specifically mentioned in the rules of the competition the FA Challenge Cup Committee shall have the power to take such action as it deems necessary."

However, Bowen warns that the insistence that no precedent has been set is "nonsense".

"In Northern Ireland, we had a similar situation when Coleraine and Linfield met in a cup tie. Coleraine's winner clearly went over the bar and rolled down the back of the net. We nearly had a pitch invasion, and the Linfield players threatened to walk off. Yet we had to stand by the referee because he awarded a goal.

"For the past 123 years, no matter what extraordinary situations have occurred, once a goal is scored, if play re-starts, it stands."

FIFA director of communications Keith Cooper claimed the English match was a special case:

"It wasn't that the referee had done anything wrong, more that both sides were unhappy with the way the result had been achieved."