K League Substitution Mistake Incident is Likely to be Concluded
The K-League "Substitution Mistake" Incident is Likely to be Concluded Mid-Week... “Rationality Rather than Speed”
The professional league will decide whether to forfeit Pohang after consulting with the reward and punishment committee and reviewing overseas cases.
Pohang and Jeonbuk are in the semifinals of the FA Cup on the weekend, so it seems like it will be resolved before then.
The Korea Professional Football League is deepening its concerns over the "substitution mistake" incident that occurred in the professional soccer K League 1 game between Jeonbuk Hyundai and Pohang Steelers.
The professional league held a match evaluation committee meeting on the morning of the 30th.
At this meeting, it seemed like it would be decided whether Pohang would lose 0-3 forfeit in relation to the substitution error incident, but the professional league decided not to reach a conclusion right away.
A high-ranking official from the professional league said, "It is not a matter to be judged mechanically.
I was thinking of making a decision today, but it looks like we need a little more time."
He continued, “There will be no K-League games for the time being. This
is a time when rational judgment is needed rather than speed.”
The biggest reason why the professional league is trying to handle the case with an emphasis on "rationality" rather than "speed" is because it is very difficult to find Pohang"s "reason for fault".
It is true that Pohang tried to replace the injured Kim Yong-hwan with Shin Kwang-hoon, who plays the same fullback position, but made the mistake of writing "Kim In-seong out, Shin Kwang-hoon in" instead of "Kim Yong-hwan out, Shin Kwang-hoon in".
However, this is just a mistake for the Pohang team itself.
It"s just a replacement card being used incorrectly.
It was not a mistake that undermined the fairness of the game.
The problem then occurred when the umpires failed to properly process ‘Kim In-seong out, Shin Gwang-hoon in’.
Kim In-seong played on the ground, and the second referee left him alone.
The second referee appears to have mistakenly thought that Kim Yong-hwan, who was receiving treatment for an injury off the pitch, was legitimately removed as a substitute.
Some point out that Pohang should take responsibility as Kim In-seong, who continued to play even though he was subject to replacement, is also at fault.
However, Article 3, paragraph 3 of the International Football Association Board"s (IFAB) Rules of the Match provides that "if the player to be replaced refuses to leave, he shall continue the match."
Even if Kim In-seong knew that he was a replacement, there is no problem with his actions in continuing to play.
In that case, the only mistake left is the referees who let Shin Gwang-hoon in even though Kim In-seong continued to play.
Of course, the most unfair party in this incident is Jeonbuk.
For the record, we had to compete for 6 minutes against 12 opponents.
However, Kim Yong-hwan did not actually ‘play’ on the ground.
He was still off the field.
The professional league decided to review from various angles the opinions of both clubs, the referees and other officials present at the time, and the advice of the rewards and punishment committee members and the chairman.
We will also review overseas cases and use them as a reference in reaching a conclusion.
Substitution mistakes are common in European leagues as well.
In the German Bundesliga match between Bayern Munich and Freiburg in April last year, a similar substitution error occurred in the Jeonbuk-Pohang game, and Freiburg claimed a 0-2 forfeit to Munich.
At the time, the German Football Association (DFB) did not accept Freiburg"s argument, saying that the referees who were negligent in their "inspection duties" were more responsible than the club during the replacement process.
The next K League 1 round 36 will be held on the 11th and 12th of next month.
There is still nearly two weeks left, but the Korean Football Association FA Cup semi-finals will be held this coming weekend, so it is expected that the professional league will reach a conclusion within this week at least.
Both Pohang and Jeonbuk are in the semifinals of the FA Cup.
If you win the FA Cup, you will receive a ticket to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League Elite (ACLE) for the 2024-2025 season.
Therefore, the FA Cup is also not unrelated to the last-minute ranking battle in K League 1.
Depending on the professional league"s judgment on Pohang"s forfeit, the weight the two teams will feel about the FA Cup semifinals may vary.
The fact that there are only three ACLE advancement tickets for the 2024-2025 season distributed domestically makes Jeonbuk and Pohang even more sensitive to the decision of the professional federation.
Currently, the 1st and 2nd place teams in K League 1 and the FA Cup winners will advance to the ACLE.
In K League 1, Pohang is in second place with 60 points, and Jeonbuk is in fourth place with 53 points.
If the decision is made to forfeit Pohang and Jeonbuk reaches 55 points, the possibility of Jeonbuk achieving a "comeback runner-up" becomes greater.