Vietnam's football fanatics might harm the national team's performance during the current regional tournament.
On Friday, November 16, during the match between Vietnam and Malaysia in the group stage of AFF championship, flares ignited by Vietnamese fans were spotted in the stadium despite warnings and prohibition of such behavior by the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF), Dan Tri reports.
While the national men's team managed to notch a 2-0 win against Malaysia, increasing the team's chances to advance to the knockout phase, fans' bad behavior might cause a disadvantage in their next match. After the incident during the match against South Korea back in August, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) warned that if bad behaviors persist, the penalty will be more severe.
Back in October, VFF was fined US$12,000 by AFC as the result of flares set off by Vietnamese fans during the team's Asian Games match against South Korea in Indonesia on August 29.
The national team is up against Cambodia in the next match of AFF on Saturday, November 24. The match's venue is supposed to be Hang Day Stadium in Hanoi. If the AFC decides to impose a penalty for the flares, the match may have to be held in a neutral venue, stripping Vietnam of its home advantage.
As VFF is already selling tickets for the match, if a venue change happens, it's likely that the team will have to play without an audience.
[Photo via Goal.com]
