In this match, Myanmar player, Hein Phyo Win, had foul play with Marselino Ferdinan of the Indonesian team.
The incident happened at the end of the first half, when Marselino was dribbling the ball and was fouled. Hein Phyo Win suddenly kicked the ball hard at Marselino's head, causing the Indonesian player to be in pain and his teammates to react violently. Referee Wong Wai Lun gave Hein Phyo Win a yellow card after this incident.
Sharing with the media, Mr. Arya Sinulingga - leader of PSSI expressed his disappointment: "We could not have imagined that such dangerous moves would happen in top matches. Every player has a future, hurting an opponent can destroy their career."
Despite the incident being dealt with by a yellow card, Mr. Arya still called for building a healthier football environment in Southeast Asia, especially as Indonesia will be hosting the upcoming tournaments.
After the match between Indonesia and Myanmar, Indonesian fans flooded Hein Phyo Win’s Instagram page to criticize his actions. Thousands of negative comments forced the Myanmar player to disable the comment feature on his personal page.
Indonesian fans have asked the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) to take strict disciplinary action against Myanmar players for their unfair play.
The match saw Indonesia play better with 57% possession and 17 shots, but Myanmar also created some dangerous chances, including a header that hit the crossbar. It was not until the 76th minute that Indonesia got the only goal of the match thanks to an own goal by the Myanmar goalkeeper.
