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Turks and Rivaldo in red card row

Turkish fans react in horror as they watch the game at a shopping centre in Ankara

ULSAN, South Korea -- Turkish officials have rounded on Brazilian striker Rivaldo after a controversial end to their opening World Cup match.

The Barcelona forward collapsed to the ground clutching his face as he waited to take a corner in the last minute of Brazil's 2-1 victory on Monday after Turkey's Hakan Unsal had kicked the ball at him.

Television pictures proved the ball only hit Rivaldo's legs but the Turkish player was sent off -- Turkey's second red card of the game in Ulsan. (Match report)

"I do not condone or approve of Hakan's action but Rivaldo held his head and fell down like he was having a brain haemorrhage despite the ball hitting his legs," Haluk Ulusoy, the head of Turkey's football association, told Reuters. "It was acting."

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"They told us when we came here that any action designed to fool a referee would be punished, but it's our players who are being punished."

FIFA, world football's governing body, said on Tuesday a disciplinary panel would look at the incident and Rivaldo, who scored a match-winning penalty three minutes from the end, could be banned. A ruling is expected on Wednesday.

Rivaldo admitted he faked being hurt but condemned Hakan, saying: "That kind of attitude must not be allowed on the pitch. He deserved to have a red card.

"Obviously I exaggerated the incident for the guy to be sent off. The ball hit my hand and my leg. It didn't hit me in the face."

Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari told reporters: "The press is saying Rivaldo is going to be punished because they think that is the most interesting story. But the importance of the incident has been exaggerated."

German coach Rudi Voeller added his voice to the criticism, saying: "What Rivaldo did was not right. Such a great player shouldn't behave that way."

In Berlin, where hundreds of fans watched the match at the Potsdamer Platz shopping plaza, two Turkish teenagers were held by police for throwing bottles at Brazilian fans, Reuters reported.