The referee was right to give the Vietnamese team a penalty kick.

The situation leading to the penalty took place behind the Malaysian goal. This was a very rare situation but referee Ryuji Sato made the right call according to the rules when awarding the penalty to the Vietnamese team.

Former head of the referee board, Mr. Duong Van Hien commented: "The two players have gone out of the playing area but the important thing is that the ball is still in play. Therefore, according to the rules, the referee will move the foul point to the nearest point on the playing field. That is the penalty area so the penalty is correct."

Malaysian player kicked Van Hau in the head. Photo: Hai Hoang

"The Japanese referee followed the situation closely and discovered the collision between the two players after the ball was kicked back up. The referee's method is to still monitor the hot spot of the collision to grasp the situation. Many spectators do not understand why there was a penalty," Mr. Hien said.

Mr. Hien added that if the ball goes out, the referee only needs to consider the collision between the two players and not consider the factors leading to the penalty as in the case where the ball is still in play.

Malaysian players react to the referee. Photo: Hai Hoang

Article 14 of FIFA's Laws of the Game on Penalties states: "When the ball is live and a player or team member commits a foul against an opponent or the referee, the penalty kick shall be taken on the touchline nearest to where the foul occurred."

This sensitive move happened in the 59th minute when Van Hau was determined to break into the penalty area. He pushed Malaysia's number 2 defender down and both of them flew into the advertising board. Seemingly frustrated with the tackle of Vietnam's number 5, Azam Azmi kicked Van Hau in the head.

Referee Sato awarded the Vietnamese team a penalty first, but he had to consult his second assistant about giving a card. After less than a minute of consultation, the referee gave Azam Azmi a red card and asked him to leave the field. Photo: Hai Hoang

Both the Malaysian and Vietnamese players were confused as to why the referee decided to award a penalty. The visiting team was even more shocked when they had one player sent off.

Thus, from the 63rd minute, both teams played with 10 men after Nguyen Van Toan was sent off in the 33rd minute. Que Ngoc Hai successfully converted the penalty kick a minute later to help the Vietnamese team lead 2-0. In the 83rd minute, Hoang Duc raised the score to 3-0.