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Referee Chris Beath handed out seven yellow cards in the fiery contest while Adelaide’s Argentinean playmaker Marcelo Carrusca was forced to leave the field in the 69th minute after a number of clashes with Jets hardman Ruben Zadkovich.
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“The doctor thinks he cannot play next Friday,” Gombau said.
“I am disappointed because we need to protect the players."
Gombau had prepared his side for a physical encounter but said the referee’s decision not to red card Taylor Regan at the end of the first half set a precedent for the rest of the game.
“We spoke the other week that they (Newcastle) commit a lot of fouls,” Gombau said.
“The moment the referee must make a decision like this he must protect the players. If not they are making fouls, fouls, fouls.
“In the end the player who is playing clean cannot finish the game and cannot play next week. The referee’s job is very difficult but he needs to protect the players,” he said.
Jets coach Gary van Egmond felt both sides were responsible for the physicality of the match.
“There were some poor challenges on both sides,” van Egmond said.
“The one that Carrusca did on Ruben, although he didn’t roll around 15 times, was a poor challenge.
“I think it’s fair to say that both sides were fairly physical out there,” he said.
United took the lead in the 26th minute after some impressive play from Spanish recruit Sergio Cirio. The winger turned his player in midfield and burst through the centre of the park, sending the ball to fellow import Jeronimo on the wing. The Argentine forward slid a cross into the box which was punched away by Birighitti however it fell to Lustica who had made a late run into the box.
Lustica fluffed his lines as he attempted to strike but his mis-hit shot fell fortuitously to an unmarked Djite who slammed home into an empty net.
Newcastle’s best chance of the match came in the 62nd minute when a looped through-ball caught United’s defence napping. Adam Taggart was the beneficiary but couldn’t add to his six-goal tally for the season as an onrushing Galekovic managed a reflex save to deny the youngster from close range.
Cirio had the chance to kill the game off in the 86th minute but couldn’t find a way past Birighitti. Some smart play from Mabil on the wing allowed him to skip past his defender and provide a cutback to Cirio who pounced with a first-time strike which he could only direct at the stopper.
Adelaide United: Galekovic, McKain, Malik, Neumann, Isaias, Cirio, Carrusca, Djite, Lustica, Zullo, Elrich
Subs: Boogaard, Mabil, Barker-Daish, Hall, Costa
Newcastle Jets: Birighitti, Regan, Kantarovski, Hoole, Zadkovich, Burns, Mitchell, Brillante, Pepper, Gallaway, Taggart
Subs: Caravella, Heskey, Goodwin, Brown, Kennedy