U23 Thailand escaped a sensitive penalty, fans called out VAR

Thailand U23 won 3-1 against Philippines U23 in the third place match of the Southeast Asian U23 tournament on the evening of July 28 at Bung Karno Stadium. However, the Philippines U23 players were still upset by the referee's controversial handling of the turning point.

The situation happened in the 50th minute (when U23 Thailand was leading 1-0), U23 Philippines had a pretty good attacking combination. The ball was passed down the left wing to Caraig in an open position. This player turned the ball past the U23 Thailand defender, before unleashing a very powerful shot towards the goal. It seemed that the ball hit the hand of center back Pichitchai Siengthong as the shot was heading towards the goal.

U23 Thailand escaped a sensitive penalty, fans called out VAR - 1

The ball touched Pichitchai Siengthong's hand in the penalty area but the referee did not award a penalty to U23 Philippines (Screenshot).

However, Indonesian referee Naufal Adya Fairuski did not award a penalty to the Philippines U23. The Philippines U23 players protested the referee's decision but he did not change his decision.

Because the third-place match of the U23 Southeast Asian Championship did not have VAR, the referee could not accurately determine this rather quick situation. Reviewing the slow-motion replay, many people also had different opinions. On the ASEAN Football forum, some people thought that center-back Pichitchai Siengthong had his arm close to his body. However, some other opinions said that this player's arm was big enough to block the U23 Philippines' potential shot.

However, most opinions do not blame the referee, because he did not have the support of VAR. Instead, they question the tournament's lack of this technology (except for the final). Here are some typical opinions:

"I don't understand why tournaments around the world have popularized VAR but the U23 Southeast Asian tournament still doesn't use it."

“If VAR cannot be applied, it is best to cancel the tournament.”

“Southeast Asian football is going against the world trend.”

“Without VAR, I felt the game was unfair and lacked a modern feel.”

Anyway, the Southeast Asian Football Federation (AFF) has just confirmed that the final match between U23 Vietnam and U23 Indonesia will have VAR technology. This will help the match avoid controversial situations like the match between U23 Thailand and U23 Philippines.

The final match of the U23 Southeast Asian tournament between U23 Vietnam and U23 Indonesia will take place at 8:00 p.m. today (July 29) at Bung Karno Stadium.

Watch the full 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Football Championship Mandiri Cup™ on FPT Play, visit http://fptplay.vn

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/u23-thai-lan-thoat-phat-den-nhay-cam-co-dong-vien-goi-ten-var-20250729094649729.htm