[Official] Suwon's Ko Jong-hyun suspended for two matches in 'post-match disciplinary action'... K-League final decision by the Disciplinary Committee

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Ko Jong-hyun (20), center back for Suwon Samsung of K League 2 professional football, received a two-match suspension.

The Korea Professional Football League held a disciplinary committee meeting on the 28th and imposed a two-match suspension on Ko Jong-hyun, who had only received a yellow card despite striking Jeung Seung-yong in the face with his elbow during the match against SeongnamFC.

Previously, during a corner kick situation in the match against Seongnam held at Tancheon General Sports Complex on the 25th, Ko Jong-hyun was involved in a position dispute and struck Jeung Seung-yong in the face with his right elbow, unrelated to the ball.

Jeung Seung-yong, who collapsed on the spot, complained of pain and received treatment. He eventually requested a substitution at the end of the first half and proceeded to the emergency room. According to the club, Jeung Seung-yong was diagnosed with an orbital fracture, making surgery unavoidable.

However, Park Jung-ho, the referee who officiated the match at the time, issued only a yellow card to Ko Jong-hyun instead of a red card (ejection). Referees An Jae-hoon and Gwak Seung-soon, who were serving as Video Assistant Referees (VAR), also did not recommend an on-field review.

Subsequently, the Korea Football Association's Professional Referee Evaluation Council concluded that both Park Jung-ho, the main referee at the time, and the VAR officials had committed a "misjudgment."

Through a judgment briefing on this day, the Professional Referee Evaluation Council determined that "Ko Jong-hyun's act of striking the face using his elbow was carried out independently of any ball contest, and neither the contact area nor the intensity of the impact can be considered negligible."

It further explained, "Therefore, the yellow card issued by the on-field referee was inappropriate, and an ejection for violent conduct would have been the correct judgment (misjudgment). In addition, missing a foul worthy of ejection constitutes a clear and obvious error, so the VAR officials should have actively recommended an on-field review to the main referee and intervened (misjudgment)."

In response, the Korea Professional Football League referred Ko Jong-hyun to its disciplinary committee, taking into account the opinion of the KFA's Professional Referee Evaluation Council. After deliberation, it decided on a post-match disciplinary action of a two-match suspension. The league's disciplinary committee stated, "After comprehensively considering the evaluation results from the Korea Football Association's Referee Committee, the opinions of the league's Technical Committee, and disciplinary regulations, we have decided to impose a two-match suspension on Ko Jong-hyun."

Due to this post-match discipline, Ko Jong-hyun will be unable to play in the away match against DaeguFC on the 31st and the match against YonginFC on the 8th of next month.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original