Chinese Super League referee Shen Yinhao defends academic plagiarism after angry Shandong Luneng fans report him
- Shen Yinhao leaves CSL’s Suzhou bubble after Shandong Luneng fans report him to employer Tongji University in Shanghai
- Fifa official’s decisions in draw with Beijing Guoan saw club write to complain to the Chinese Football Association
A Chinese Super League referee is having to defend himself against a charge of academic plagiarism after fans took revenge on him for what they saw as bad calls in the game between Shandong Luneng and Beijing Guoan on October 17.
Shen Yinhao awarded Beijing Guoan a penalty to make the score 2-1, which Shandong players claimed was not a foul.
He then allowed the equalising goal to stand despite Shandong defenders claiming a foul in the build-up.
On both occasions the Shandong team urged Shen to check the video replay by the side of the pitch but he ignored their pleas.
The decisions resulted in a 2-2 first leg draw and Shandong Luneng writing to the Chinese Football Assocation to complain.
However, as CSL broadcaster PP Sports reported, fans took matters into their own hands by searching out his thesis for a master’s degree course he has enrolled.
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The “thesis incident” has seen Shen leave the Suzhou bubble, where the CSL’s title deciding tournament is being finished, and return to Tongji University in Shanghai on October 19 to defend plagiarism charges.
Shen, who is a Fifa approved referee, is reported to be the deputy dean of the International Football Academy of Tongji University.
“On October 17, Shen Yinhao‘s enforcement of the Jinglu match-up in the first round resulted in multiple disputes and penalties,” PP Sports wrote.
“After the game, Luneng fans checked their papers and found that his article ‘Research on the Causes and Countermeasures of the Psychological Pressure of College Student Football Referees’ published in the journal Sports Fashion in 2017 was suspected of plagiarising Lu Yunfei’s 2012 article ‘University Football Referee Research on the Causes and Countermeasures of Stage Fright’. Then it was revealed that Shen Yinhao’s master’s thesis was also suspected of plagiarism.”
PP Sports also reported that the plagiarism investigation results will be revealed soon. It is unclear how the Chinese Football Association will punish him should he be found guilty.
In an editorial published following the Shandong vs Beijing first leg, Xinhua called on referees to stop being the “protagonist”.
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Beijing and Shandong meet again on Thursday, with the winner moving to the semi-finals. If the scores are level at full time then the match will be decided by penalties.
