Referee Ha Anh Chien was suspended for 4 matches.

Mr. Ha Anh Chien, who awarded Thanh Hoa a controversial penalty in the match against SLNA in round nine of V-League 2016 last weekend, must face disciplinary action.

The collision that led to the controversial penalty at Thanh Hoa Stadium. Screenshot.

“Through the report of the referee supervisor and the video recording, we confirm that referee Ha Anh Chien made a serious mistake, affecting the result of the match. Therefore, we have decided to suspend this referee until the end of the first leg of V-League 2016”, Head of the Referee Board Nguyen Van Mui shared withVnExpress.

“However, this is only a temporary form of discipline. We are waiting for a report from referee Chien and at the end of the first leg, when the Referee Board meets, the penalty may change to suit the referee's mistake.”

Referee Ha Anh Chien made an incorrect decision that caused a stir in the V-League. Photo: Duc Dong.

In the 87th minute of the match at Thanh Hoa Stadium, SLNA defender Dinh Hoang collided with striker Omar. The incident happened a meter away from the penalty area but referee Chien awarded the home team a penalty. Omar then successfully converted the penalty, tying the score at 2-2.

Mr. Mui added that he could not confirm that referee Chien made professional mistakes or had ideological problems as rumored by the public. “If the mistakes go beyond professional, we will ask the Vietnam Football Federation to invite the police to investigate,” said the head of the Referee Board.

Linesman Tran Duy Khanh also received a similar penalty. In the match at Hang Day Stadium, Hanoi T&T team passed the ball nearly a meter over the goal line but was not recognized by the referee team.

“In this situation, the main referee was standing vertically, making it difficult to observe. Meanwhile, linesman Duy Khanh was standing at the corner flag, with a favorable viewing angle, but could not determine that the ball had crossed the goal line. The linesman should have determined this situation and informed the main referee of the goal. Therefore, the serious error belongs to the linesman and Mr. Khanh will be suspended for the rest of the first leg,” Mr. Mui informed.

Referee Nguyen Duc Vu, who officiated the Long An-Dong Thap match, was not disciplined. Mr. Vu was considered to have handled the situation correctly in awarding a penalty to Long An, despite controversy that the dispute took place outside the penalty area.

According to VNE