Chinese soccer gets a bloody nose
Chinese soccer sunk to a new low on Wednesday, when a supposedly friendly encounter between the country's Olympic team and London's Queens Park Rangers descended into an ugly brawl that was more like a kungfu movie than the "beautiful game."
Under-21 international defender Zheng Tao was knocked unconscious and hospitalized in the melee, and he was later confirmed as having suffered a fractured jaw.
Zheng Tao of China's Olympic Soccer Team lies on the ground after he was hit in the face during an ugly melee in a friendly game between the team and English Championship club Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday. The game was abandoned due to the melee, with the Chinese team trailing 2-1. Zheng suffered a broken jaw in the fight and was sent to a local hospital immediately. At press time he was still being treated, and he is expected to be out of action for three months. Sports.sina.com.cn |
At least 30 people were involved in the brawl, in the second half of a bad-tempered match, including substitutes and coaching staff. The game, at the Championship team's training ground, was abandoned by the referee with the score 2-1.
"It's bad and it's not acceptable. There is nothing important about who began the fight," China's head coach Ratomir Dujkovic told reporters.
"We are professional players and we must accept this (provocation)."
The fight was sparked when Chinese forward Gao Lin attempted a jump kick on an opposition player. The two players had been in conflict the whole game with a series of increasingly aggressive fouls, and after a kick in the ankle from the defender off the ball, the red mist descended.
The two players grappled on the ground before their teammates joined the fray, with QPR players throwing punches and the Chinese side jumping in with flying kicks.
"I remembered when I ran to the clash, there were about five players around me. Someone behind me knocked me down to the ground and then more feet stamped on me," Zheng, who is still in hospital, was quoted as saying on Sina.com. "I cannot remember who exactly hit me in the jaw. But I am sure it was broken by a heavy stamp."
Zheng will be sidelined for at least three months.
The Chinese Olympic team for next year's Beijing Games are in England for a two-week stay at Premier League side Chelsea's training complex. Since beginning the European tour on January 9th they have played nine friendly matches, mostly against the reserves of major local clubs.
Shanghai Shenhua striker Gao, who has been sent home for his role, said he had been provoked but regretted his behavior.
"I failed to control myself in the match," he said.
"When facing the provocation I failed to obey the three rules of submitting to the referee, respecting opponents, and not striking back, which caused the incident ... I sincerely apologize to the fans."
This was not the first controversial incident on the team's London trip.
Fights broke out during their match between Chelsea's reserve team on Monday, and players have expressed dissatisfaction with the facilities provided by Chelsea.
The team's manager apologized for the lingering bad habits of his players, and promised to make more efforts to improve their sportsmanship.
"The coaching team realized the problem right after the Chelsea match. We also had a meeting and asked the players to behave themselves on the pitch," Li Xiaoguang said in a statement.
"We should all take responsibility for another similar brawl. Chinese football is once again marred in front of the fans. We apologize and will do more work on discipline education."
The China Football Association would not comment on the issue, with spokespersons and senior officials not answering calls.
QPR confirmed in a statement on their official website that an incident had taken place and that they were conducting an internal investigation, but said they would not comment further on the issue.
The team's final friendly with League 1 side Brentford on Tuesday has been called off.
(China Daily 02/09/2007 page22)
