Former player Le Quoc Vuong: 'Must discipline the Referee Council'

(Baonghean.vn) - If former golden whistle Duong Manh Hung in 2006 thought that severely "punishing" referee Ha Anh Chien was just a "scapegoat", then former player Le Quoc Vuong also boldly expressed his opinion.

Le Quoc Vuong when he was still playing for the National U23 team.

Talking to reporters, Le Quoc Vuong shared: “Public opinion last week focused too much on the "pawn" referee Ha Anh Chien, forgetting that the reality of Vietnamese football is already like that! No matter how referee Ha Anh Chien is disciplined, there are still many other unscrupulous referees. When I was still playing, it was normal for referees to "collude" with both teams at the same time. Whichever team wins, they will have money from the losers, so why ask for it back???”

“Whether Mr. Ha Anh Chien made a mistake intentionally or unintentionally, he still has to take responsibility, but the root cause still doesn't change anything. I just feel sorry for each individual who always has to be the scapegoat and the subject of public opinion! "The army loses, the general is beheaded", in my company, when employees make mistakes, the manager has to take responsibility. In my opinion, if the referee makes a mistake, the chairman of the referee council must also take the highest responsibility", the former talented midfielder of Vietnamese football concluded.

Regarding SLNA, coach Ngo Quang Truong said: “I have determined from the beginning the disciplinary penalty and the VFF disciplinary board for me and my point of view is that whoever makes a mistake must accept the punishment. Regarding the disciplinary form for referee Ha Anh Chien, I will respect the decision of the VFF disciplinary board.”

Meanwhile, SLNA Fan Club President Tran Huu Thuat is still indignant. Mr. Thuat said: "The mistake of referee Ha Anh Chien is extremely blatant. I question why referee Chien dared to do that, was it because of support or other temptations, but professionally, this referee has been working in V.League for many years."

The situation leading to referee Ha Anh Chien's imaginary penalty in the match between Thanh Hoa and SLNA on May 8.

On the side of the Thanh Hoa Fans Association, Mr. Le Thanh - Board of Directors of the Thanh Hoa Fans Forum said: "The fact that referee Ha Anh Chien was permanently suspended makes everyone think that there was real corruption in the match between FLC Thanh Hoa and SLNA, although there is no specific conclusion yet. If it was just a mistake due to a judgment error when the referee stood too far away and did not observe carefully, then the permanent suspension is too harsh for this referee. If there is real corruption, we fans will also fight for clean football and never accept that our team benefits from corruption.

Hopefully VPF and the Vietnam Football Federation will have a specific document and an official press release so that our fans can know the truth. So that the media and Vietnamese football fans can clearly understand the issue."

Trung Kien