'The referee ruined the final, he stifled us.'

Speaking after the match, coach Mai Duc Chung still couldn't believe that the Vietnamese women's team had been blatantly "robbed" of a goal in the SEA Games 33 final.

Even the Thai coaching staff expressed their displeasure on behalf of Vietnam regarding the disallowed goal.

Still reeling from the heartbreaking loss of the championship, coach Mai Duc Chung said, "I don't mean to criticize this SEA Games, but the refereeing in the women's tournament was completely inaccurate. The referees made too many avoidable mistakes. I don't understand why there were so many errors in the final match. We were disallowed at least two situations, both against the Philippines. One was in the group stage when Thanh Nha's shot hit her hand in the penalty area, and the referee ignored it. And in the final, Bich Thuy's goal was so clear, yet they bluntly disallowed it, claiming it was offside."

Coach Mai Duc Chung expressed his frustration with the referee.

PHOTO: KHA HOA

Bich Thuy made a spectacular diving header.

PHOTO: KHA HOA

But the Laotian assistant referee raised his flag to disallow the goal.

PHOTO: KHA HOA

That goal should have been allowed, but the referee ruined the final. Even the Thai coaching staff told us after the match: "That was a perfectly valid goal. The referee was unfair to your team." So, not only the Vietnamese team but also the Thai side were very upset on our behalf.

Goalkeeper Kim Thanh played excellently.

PHOTO: KHA HOA

Regarding the match, I must say we played well today. I have no complaints about the players. They played with great effort and dedication, which is commendable. In particular, they neutralized all the aerial balls, preventing the Philippines from causing any problems. The players played very disciplined and showed good fighting spirit. The Philippines couldn't utilize their aerial weapons as effectively as they had previously done to us.

The coaching staff encouraged the players.

PHOTO: KHA HOA

Am I sad? Of course, losing, especially losing so heartbreakingly, makes me very sad. But we have to accept that sadness normally. In football, there are wins and losses. If the goal isn't recognized, then we lose. But we weren't outplayed, we weren't crushed. However, this clearly had a significant impact on the final result, on the performance of the Vietnamese team."

The Vietnamese women's team received the silver medal.

PHOTO: KHA HOA

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/trong-tai-pha-hong-tran-chung-ket-bop-nghet-chung-toi-185251217234857309.htm