V-League 2017 was once again in turmoil because of the referee, in the match of round 12 at Pleiku stadium between HAGL and Thanh Hoa.
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| HAGL players questioned referee Xuan Nguyen and his assistants after the match ended. |
In this match, the team from the mountain town took a two-goal lead thanks to goals from Cong Phuong and Hong Duy. But after A Hoang was sent off and his third goal was disallowed for offside, HAGL continuously let Thanh Hoa score. In particular, the goal that sealed the score at 3-2 for the away team, scored by Uche in the final minutes of the second half, caused much controversy. HAGL believed that Thanh Hoa's player was offside. They were also unhappy when the referee refused to award a penalty after Van Toan was fouled by Mai Tien Thanh in the penalty area when the score was 2-2.
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| Consecutive unfavorable developments make HAGL fans unhappy. |
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| Some reacted strongly, forcing security forces to intervene. |
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| They shouted and cursed at the referee, and threw bottles onto the field at the referee and Thanh Hoa players. |
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| Van Toan and some teammates often had to go near the stands to ask the home fans to calm down. |
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| After the home team conceded the third goal, HAGL Football Team Leader Nguyen Tan Anh rushed onto the field to protest against referee Xuan Nguyen. |
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| Faced with the tense situation, security forces were mobilized onto the field. At this point, some HAGL players intended to abandon the match. However, Van Toan urged his teammates to return to the field and continue playing the remaining minutes of the second half. |
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| As the referees left the field, they continued to be subjected to insults... |
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| ... as well as foreign objects from the stands. Security forces had to follow closely and cover so that the referees could safely retreat into the tunnel. |
According to VNE
