According to ESPN, Hanoi Police FC has included two players who were supposed to be serving a one-match suspension in their starting lineup: Australian midfielder Stefan Mauk and Brazilian striker China.
Hanoi Police FC faces the risk of being handed a forfeit loss against Tampines Rovers (Photo: Hanoi Police FC).
According to official match data from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), both players received their third yellow card in the group stage in the 0-1 loss against Tai Po. According to Article 59.1.1 of the tournament regulations, any player who receives a yellow card in three different matches will automatically be suspended for the next match in the tournament. In Mauk and China's case, they will be forced to miss the first leg of the Round of 16 against Tampines Rovers on February 11th.
Nevertheless, both still started the match, with China scoring to make it 3-0 for Hanoi Police FC in the 37th minute.
This means that Hanoi Police FC faces the risk of being handed a 0-3 defeat by the AFC against the Singaporean representative. Commenting on this issue, Makan Bola wrote: "The use of two players who should have been suspended in the match against Tampines Rovers has put Hanoi Police FC at risk of punishment from the AFC."
In that match, Hanoi Police FC won 4-0, but they are now facing the risk of being penalized 0-3 against the Singaporean representative. The AFC will issue the official penalty to the Vietnamese club before the return match between Hanoi Police FC and Tampines Rovers on February 18th.
Was player Stefan Mauk used illegally? (Photo: Hanoi Police Club).
Last year, another Singaporean club, Lion City Sailors, also benefited when Sanfrecce Hiroshima was found to have used an ineligible player in the quarter-finals of the AFC Cup. Lion City Sailors subsequently even advanced to the final of the tournament.
Could Tampines Rovers benefit similarly in this year's tournament? If Hanoi Police FC loses its advantage due to such a basic mistake, it would be truly regrettable.”
In the event of a 0-3 defeat against Tampines Rovers, Hanoi Police FC would need to win by a margin of 4 goals or more in the return leg in Singapore to advance to the next round.
Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/bao-malaysia-noi-ve-viec-clb-cong-an-ha-noi-co-the-bi-afc-xu-thua-20260215173708829.htm
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