SPORTS> China
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SPORTS> China
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Soccer bad boy up to his old tricks
By Chen Xiangfeng (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-12-03 09:46 Bad boy of Chinese soccer Mao Jianqing and one of his Shanghai Shenhua teammates were detained in police custody for a week and fined 500 yuan ($73) after assaulting a man at a restaurant in Shanghai early Monday.
China international Mao was eating with Liu Yintao and former CBA basketball player Xu Yong hours after his team lost the Chinese Super League title when a melee erupted with a man at a nearby table at around 5am. The man, surnamed Xu, is said to have greeted one of Mao's female friends, whom he knew as a former colleague. Xu was then verbally and physically assaulted by the men without any further provocation, according to several media reports. The victim suffered head injuries and bruises to his arms and chest. Witnesses said the Shenhua players threw dishes and an ashtray at Xu. His two female friends were also injured when they tried to intervene and stop the fight. Xu and his two friends later received a telephone call from an unidentified agent representing Mao asking them to accept compensation instead of going to the police but they refused the offer, according to reports. Xu is then believed to have changed his mind and demanded 2 million yuan, which Mao declined to pay. Police charged the three athletes with assault and fined all of them 500 yuan. Only Xu Yong escaped detention on the grounds of poor health. Mao's punishment came as a major blow to his family, with his severely ill mother already in hospital and scheduled to have surgery today. Other members of the star left winger's family thought the punishment was extreme. "It's too heavy. It's just a normal affray. Mao is a regular guy off the field and everyone makes mistakes. I hope people don't give him too much pressure," his aunt was quoted as saying on xinmin.cn. But according to a public poll on domestic leading portal sina.com, over 97 percent of Chinese slammed the men's behavior as "another example of Chinese soccer players' bad personalities." Only a tiny proportion were willing to forgive and forget on the basis that Mao is "still young and prone to get out of control." Weighing further measures The scandal has added insult to injury for Shenhua, who just missed claiming the domestic league title at the weekend to finish second behind Shandong Luneng. Shenhua drew 2-2 with Zhejiang at home in Yuanshen Stadium in Pudong on Sunday night to ultimately concede the title race by two points. The club said it understands Mao was upset but it refuses to condone such behavior and will punish him accordingly. "Our players were emotional after losing the league title," said CEO Zhu Jun. "They are normal people and need to release their emotions. But this does not mean they can choose to fight. Their behavior was totally wrong and it seriously violates the club's regulations." Mao, 22, has been a key component in Shenhua's success this season and is also considered a talented winger for the national team. Despite missing the 2006 Asian Games in Doha due to injury, he scored a crucial goal against Palestine to send China through to the Asian Cup finals last year. He has, however, built a bad reputation on and off the playing field due to his fiery temper and problems in his private life that have seen him repeatedly disciplined by the national team. As a teenager, he notoriously kicked a fan during the U-17 world championships and later struck a referee at the U-19 worlds. Shenhua temporarily relegated him to the reserve team two years ago for stamping on his coach's BMW during a drunken tirade.
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