Carlos Queiroz asked how referee Ben Williams could sleep at night and said he was considering his future in the game after 10-man Iran crashed out of the Asian Cup on Friday.

The coach had to be held back by his players after Mehrdad Pooladi's controversial dismissal and he was furious as he faced media following the penalties loss to arch-rivals Iraq.

Bye, bye: Iran coach Carlos Queiroz looks angry after his team's defeat in the Asian Cup quarter-finals. Credit:Reuters

Queiroz was earlier fined $3,000 for an outburst against Australian ref Williams and he unsuccessfully tried to bite his tongue as he contemplated the ruins of Iran's campaign.

"Can he (the referee) sleep tonight?" Queiroz asked after Iran went out 7-6 on penalties, after twice coming from behind to make it 3-3 after extra time.