After last night’s sloppy 4-2 loss to Malaysia in the semi-final round of the 2014 Suzuki Cup, Vietnamese football officials plan to ask "concerned agencies" to investigate the match, the result of which has been called "incomprehensible."
In an interview with Thanh Nien after the game, VFF Chairman and Chairman of Eximbank, Le Hung Dung, insinuated that there was something was amiss with the national team’s performance:
“I don’t know what happened, and perhaps neither does coach Miura. The defense were [sic] to blame for all four goals. Were they really that bad?"
Match fixing and gambling have been widespread when it comes to Vietnamese football, and it is considered a major problem in the fight to keep the integrity of the game. In August, Tran Manh Dung, a player on Ninh Binh in the V-league, was sentenced to 30 months in jail for match fixing. In July, the VFF Disciplinary Committee suspended 6 players from any kind of football-related activity following a national investigation into match fixing.
“We want relevant authorities to step into this case and clarify the truth so that Vietnam’s football won’t be damaged any further,” Dung said.
Vietnam’s Coach Tohiya Miura said after the match that he couldn’t explain why his players’ performance dropped so significantly.
Malaysia will next play Thailand, a team that beat them 3-2 in the group stage, in the final of the AFF Suzuki Cup on next Wednesday, December 17th.
[Photo via VN Express]
