Chanathip speaks out after the brawl between Thailand and Iraq

Thailand midfielder Chanathip Songkrasin has spoken out after a rough collision with an Iraqi player in the 2025 King's Cup final.

Mohanad Ali's rough tackle on Chanathip - Source: Shahid/X

On the evening of September 7, Chanathip and the Thai team suffered a 0-1 defeat to Iraq in the final of the King's Cup 2025 friendly tournament. Thereby, they accepted to watch their opponents lift the championship title right on their home field.

The match was extremely tense and fierce, culminating in the situation in the 90+4 minute. At that time, Chanathip was holding the ball in the midfield area when Iraqi striker Mohanad Ali rushed in from behind and tackled him.

The kick straight to the leg made "Thai Messi" fall to the ground in pain and had to leave the field on a stretcher.

This unsportsmanlike act by Ali resulted in a red card from the referee, and sparked a fierce brawl between the players of both teams. The Thai players were upset and reacted violently to Ali, creating a chaotic scene that forced the security forces to intervene.

Thailand and Iraq teams fought fiercely - Photo: Thairath

Earlier in the 76th minute, the Iraqi team also lost a player when Frans Haddad Putros received a second yellow card.

After the match, Chanathip shared about the terrifying tackle he had to face. "Honestly, since I started playing football, I have never been tackled so hard and maliciously," he said.

"At that time I was very angry, but maybe he (Mohanad Ali) also felt regretful. This should not happen in football, especially when their team had the advantage and we did not play rough," the Thai midfielder added.

Thairath newspaper said Chanathip only suffered a muscle injury and not a ligament injury, but he still needs to be examined further.

This defeat not only caused the Thai team to miss out on the King's Cup title at home but also put them at risk of falling in the FIFA rankings. Coach Masatada Ishii's future is also in question after this defeat.

THANH DINH

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/chanathip-len-tieng-sau-man-au-da-giua-tuyen-thai-lan-va-iraq-20250908085112617.htm