Supachok is not playing fair.
In the second leg of the 2024 AFF Cup final, Supachok Sarachat scored the goal to raise the score to 2-1 for Thailand in the 64th minute. However, this goal caused controversy due to the lack of fair-play spirit. Before that, the Vietnamese team threw the ball out of bounds to support an injured teammate, but when Thailand threw the ball back, instead of returning the ball, Supachok shot straight into the goal.
Currently, on the AFF Cup 2024 homepage, Supachok's goal is leading the poll for "Best goal of the second leg final" with 53.39% of the votes, surpassing Nguyen Hai Long's goal from midfield (40.85%). Notably, many Vietnamese fans voted for Supachok as a form of irony for his lack of fair-play.
Supachok Sarachat (7) in controversy after his goal
On January 6, Supachok explained on his personal page that he was not aware of the need to return the ball and was not sure about the injury status of the Vietnamese player. However, this explanation did not reduce criticism from fans.
This incident has sparked many debates about sportsmanship and fair play in Southeast Asian football. Although Supachok's goal was highly appreciated for its technicality, the way he scored the goal disappointed many fans and raised questions about the ethics of the game.
Watch Supachok and Hai Long's goals again to see which one is better.
Supachok's goal was scored in the 64th minute, from a throw-in after Vietnam's goalkeeper Dinh Trieu had cleared the ball because a home player had been injured earlier. Instead of returning the ball like most players would do, Supachok received the ball from his teammate and fired a long-range shot into the Vietnamese net, raising the score to 2-1, to the amazement of all the spectators watching the match.
This goal immediately received fierce criticism and was considered "unsportsmanlike". On his Instagram account, midfielder Supachok Sarachat officially spoke up about his goal. He affirmed that he had never lacked sportsmanship. Supachok said that at that time, the score was 1-1 and Thailand needed to attack to level the gap after two matches. Right before Dinh Trieu threw the ball out of bounds, Supachok was fouled in the middle of the field and was upset when the referee did not blow the whistle for a penalty against the Vietnamese player.
Supachok Sarachat posted a message explaining, and partly apologizing for, the unsporting goal.
The Thai midfielder wrote: "After the ball went out, I went to complain to the referee about the foul, asking him to consult VAR. At that time, we needed to put strong pressure on Vietnam. I was not focused and did not care about how the ball went out because I was busy talking to the referee in an angry state."
After the ball was brought back, with instinct and the noise on the field, he decided to shoot in a split second because he thought Thailand was attacking. Supachok said that when he saw the Vietnamese players rushing to protest, he was also confused because he did not know what he did wrong.
"I tried to explain to them that I didn't know what happened before because I was angry with the referee's decision," Supachok wrote.
Asean Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2024 is broadcast live and in full on FPT Play, at: http://fptplay.vn
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/khong-tin-duoc-ban-thang-ban-cua-supachok-dan-dau-danh-sach-pha-lap-cong-dep-nhat-185250107103306655.htm
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