Referee Ha Anh Chien ruined the North Central derby party

(Baonghean.vn) - It was not Omar and Ivan Firer (FLC Thanh Hoa) and Ouatara Baba Affoloh, Van Vinh (SLNA) who had an impact on the 2-2 score in the North Central derby, but referee Ha Anh Chien who ruined the football party on Thanh Hoa field.

If referee Ha Anh Chien's imaginary penalty in the 88th minute is considered legal, FIFA may have to "loosen the rules" to the point that "referees can still award a penalty in situations where a foul is committed 16.5 meters away from the area."

The funny thing is that almost all the spectators and players of both teams could see that situation, but only the main referee and the assistant referee, who was assigned to judge, could not see it. Previously, in the situation where midfielder Quy Suu of FLC Thanh Hoa pulled down Baba's pants during an attack, the referee did not issue a yellow card. Sports journalists present at Thanh Hoa stadium even had to joke that "the pants must be below the knee to be issued a card", while at the beginning of the match, defender Ngoc Duc was given a yellow card in an unclear situation.

Referee Ha Anh Chien (middle) was assigned to officiate the match and was disappointing.

Except for the infamous whistle, which the tournament organizers and the referees could not help but comment on, the match was worth watching. The two coaches, one young and one old, of SLNA and FLC Thanh Hoa had some great minutes of intellectual competition.

It was no coincidence that veteran Van Vinh, a player without much physical strength, was trusted by SLNA's coaching staff to enter the field from the start. Even at the end of the first half, there was a time when Phi Son wanted to take a corner kick, but assistant coach Duc Thang shouted "let Vinh kick it"!

It must be said that this was the best match in terms of SLNA's ability to control the game since the beginning of the season. The attacks had clear intentions, the coordination between the lines was neat. Coach Quang Truong advocated a 4-5-1 defense, with only Odat playing, so there were many situations where Van Vinh and Ngoc Hai stepped up as a second striker while Baba dropped quite deep to fight for the ball.

Because they understood each other so well, FLC Thanh Hoa continuously penetrated SLNA's left wing with the dynamism of Quoc Phuong and Dinh Dong. Because they assessed Phi Son's danger, defender Tien Thanh did not advance, FLC Thanh Hoa used many high balls to pass through the heads of Omar and Ivan Firer to Dinh Tung.

SLNA players and coaching staff were upset with the referee's behavior.

In the 39th minute, Ouatara Baba Affoloh opened the scoring for SLNA with a header in the penalty area, but the credit goes to Van Vinh's skillful kick with the outside of his foot. It was also Van Vinh, with a free kick with the inside of his right foot, that made Firer the sinner.

Coach Le Thuy Hai boldly brought Firer onto the field, bringing in the "youngster" Thanh Binh to switch to a 4-3-3 formation. Like Phi Son, the two midfielders Quoc Phuong and Dinh Tung played extremely well but had no luck in scoring. FLC Thanh Hoa's equalizer was made from a classy free kick by Vietnam's top midfielder Hoang Thinh.

The North Central Derby ended in disappointment.

In fact, in the last 20 minutes, the home team FLC Thanh Hoa could have scored an equalizer, but without the "help" of the "kings of the field", Vietnamese football, which has had many scandals, would have received less reaction from the real audience.

For the first time in his coaching career, Coach Quang Truong received a red card for reacting to the referee, but all the sports journalists present at Thanh Hoa Stadium expressed their agreement. Even Thanh Hoa spectators did not want a draw like that, the "ball" now lies at the feet of the Disciplinary Board.

Many young SLNA players collapsed on the field because of indignation.

FLC Thanh Hoa: Thanh Thang, Dinh Dong, Xuan Hung, Van Phong, Mai Tien Thanh, Quoc Phuong, Hoang Thinh, Quy Suu, Dinh Tung, Omar, Firer.

SLNA: Nguyen Manh, Dinh Hoang, Minh Duc, Van Khanh, Ngoc Duc, Van Vinh, Ngoc Toan, Ngoc Hai, Phi Son, Baba, Odat.

Score: 2-2

An Thanh

Photo: Trung Kien