Credit: Twitter
A shocking incident occurred in China’s second-division league, where a football manager slapped a referee and then fainted “due to anger” on the pitch on Sunday, July 23. The incident took place during the math between Liaoning Shenyang Urban and Nanjing City and the Chinese manager was taken to the hospital in an ambulance for treatment.
The manager, Duan Xin, was in charge of Liaoning City who played against Nanjing City away, and the score was only 1-0 to Nanjing when Xin’s side appealed for a penalty which they did not get. The coaching staff was livid and protested to the referee but received a yellow card in the process. Duan was shown a straight red for his behavior and the situation then escalated as the manager slapped the referee before fainting because of excess anger.
According to reports, Duan fainted “due to anger” and was suffering from high blood pressure. The medical staff gave him oxygen and then carried him away on a stretcher. The head coach was then taken to a nearby hospital for further examination and later issued an apology to the referee putting his actions to being “too excited.”
The club announced that internal team modifications will be made in conformity with applicable regulations. Based on the current scenario, Duan Xin will almost certainly face heavy punishment from the Football Association for assaulting the referee. It is likely that Xin will be fired and may not be able to coach any football team again.
The referee, who was not seriously injured, continued the game after a delay, and the match ended 4-0 to Nanjing City. This is not the first time referees have been attacked or abused by managers or players in football. In recent years, there have been several cases of violence or verbal abuse towards officials in various leagues around the world.
