Red card: Clip of “wrestling move” in local football match goes viral

KUALA LUMPUR: A supposed “wrestling move” seen in a recent viral video recorded during a youth football match here has sparked strong sentiments over the quality of refereeing.

On X, former national footballer Shazwan Wong @ShazwanWong shared two videos of a match between two teams: one in blue and one in yellow. The clip showed the yellow team getting a free kick just outside the penalty box.

However, one of the players from the yellow team was seen pouncing on the opposition’s goalkeeper, pushing him away from the goal and giving the blue team a clear shot at the goal. The goalkeeper fell to the side and failed to stop the ball, resulting in a goal for the yellow team.

What shocked most, it seems, was that the referee allowed the goal despite it considered to be a foul. To make things more tensed, one of their players celebrated the goal by placing his index finger on his lips, gesturing to the crowd to be silent.

For many commenters, the pouncing move was not unlike a professional wrestling move.

Aliff H. @AlepHazwan commented: “What is going on here? Hugging the goalie?”

The videos, with over 314k views and 1,100 shares, had users questioned about the local youth matches.

Many users agreed that younger footballers should uphold the standards when playing football, and the responsibility of officials in promoting sportsmanship and fair play across all matches.

JW10 #SM @shafiqmunir thought the referee was too focused on the free kick taker and might not see what happpened to the goalkeeper. “But it was still a foul nonetheless. Why would he (the offender) fouled the goalie?”

Gibrail Khusairy @GibrailKhusairy commented that it is a shame if they, at the beginner level, are not taught properly by the coach and playing at a grassroots level is not solely about playing skills, while Muz @amuzam3 asked the opposition coach to be held responsible and do the right thing by asking his players to apologise.