PETALING JAYA: Selangor head coach Kim Pan-gon has called on the Malaysian Football League (MFL) to investigate an incident involving Kuching City midfielder Nazmi Faiz Mansor following his side’s 3-2 aggregate defeat in the FA Cup semi-final, second-leg match on Sunday.
Pan-gon was furious after Nazmi allegedly ran towards the Selangor bench to taunt him while celebrating Mukhairi Ajmal’s own goal in the dying minutes of extra time, which sent Kuching into the final.
The incident sparked a heated confrontation involving players and officials from both teams.
Pan-gon insisted that such behaviour was unacceptable, stressing that players should never approach an opposing team’s bench to provoke their opponents, particularly the head coach.
“You saw what happened. A player who scores a goal cannot just run over to the opposing team’s bench and confront the head coach. It was their No. 8, Nazmi, who caused all the commotion.
“Whether you win or lose, there must be fair play, sportsmanship and respect for the opposing team.
“Our players saw what happened and thought he was trying to attack me.
“That is why they stepped in to protect me, and things became chaotic.
“It was very disappointing, very disappointing. The MFL must investigate this incident.
“Winning or losing is part of the game, but everyone must respect one another.”
Adding to Pan-gon’s frustration, Selangor player Eduardo Sosa and fitness coach Joel Dones were both shown red cards by referee Izwan Abdullah following the scuffle.
Selangor had travelled to Kuching with a 2-1 aggregate advantage after winning the first leg at the Petaling Jaya Stadium on Oct 23.
However, their lead was wiped out when Kuching’s Safawi Rasid converted a penalty after a video assistant referee (VAR) review found that Harith Haiqal Adam Afkar had brought down Jerome Mpacko Etame inside the box.
The score remained 1-0 until the end of regulation time, forcing the match into extra time.
Just as the tie appeared to be heading for a penalty shootout, disaster struck Selangor when Mukhairi inadvertently turned the ball into his own net in the 118th minute to send Kuching through to the final.
