Chinese fans will behave for Asia Cup final: CFA<\/p>\n
Agencies, Beijing<\/p>\n
Chinese fans will behave when the hosts take on bitter rivals
\nJapan in the Asian Cup final on Saturday, but a small minority
\nmay make their voices heard, a China Football Association (CFA)
\nofficial said.<\/p>\n
\"Most fans will definitely respect the visiting team. Of
\ncourse they may be one or two individuals who are not polite,\"
\nCFA media officer Dong Hua said.<\/p>\n
He insisted that the majority of the 65,000 crowd in Beijing
\nwould not be hostile towards holder Japan, who has been booed
\nrelentlessly in China where emotions still run high over Japanese
\nmilitary aggression in the country from the 1930s until the end
\nof World War Two.<\/p>\n
\"I do not think there will be problem, Dong said. \"There will
\nbe lots of fans supporting China, but I do not think they will be
\ntoo impolite.<\/p>\n
Japan played four matches in Chongqing and its semifinal was
\nin Jinan. In Chongqing, Japanese fans were pelted with plastic
\nbottles, prompting organizers to heighten security.<\/p>\n
The CFA has appealed to fans to show restraint towards the
\nJapanese in what could be an explosive match, watched by more
\nthan 500 million people worldwide.<\/p>\n
\"The CFA has always demanded that fans respect the referee and
\nrespect the visiting team,\" Dong said. \"Definitely, most fans
\nwill adhere to that.<\/p>\n
\"We know what happened in Chongqing, but fans in Beijing have
\nnever treated an away team like that.\"<\/p>\n
Asian Cup security will also be on a heightened state of alert
\nfor Saturday's final.<\/p>\n
More than 6,000 security officials will be deployed, including
\nriot police, soldiers and SWAT teams for a potentially explosive
\ngame full of historical and political overtones.<\/p>\n
\"We have advised security staff to take extra care for the
\nJapanese team and fans,\" Peter Velappan, general secretary of the
\nAsian Football Confederation (AFC), told Reuters.<\/p>\n
\"Japanese fans will be seated together in a special marked
\narea and given extra protection from police in plain clothes to
\nmake sure there are no missiles thrown.\"<\/p>\n
The Japan team has been booed relentlessly during the Asian
\nCup, its team bus even being rushed by hordes of Chinese fans
\nafter one match.<\/p>\n
\"As it is China against Japan there will be a very high level
\nof security inside and outside the stadium,\" said Velappan.<\/p>\n
\"Japanese fans have not been encouraged to come to China, but
\nwe have been assured they will be safe and secure.\"<\/p>\n
Extra security has also been laid on for the Japan squad in
\nand around its Beijing hotel, with tough screening measures in
\nplace.<\/p>\n
At least 2,000 Japanese fans are expected to have tickets for
\nthe final in Beijing. The venue holds 65,000.<\/p>\n
Separately, Bahrain and Iran were battling exhaustion and
\nbitter disappointment as they tried to pick themselves up for a
\ncrack at the wooden spoon in the third place Asian Cup play-off
\ngame on Friday.<\/p>\n
Both teams came desperately close to making the showpiece
\nfinal but have instead had to settle for the altogether lower key
\nevent at Beijing's Workers' Stadium.<\/p>\n
\"In this tournament, it will be better to get third than
\nfourth,\" said Iranian coach Branko Ivankovic, but acknowledged
\nthat it could be one match too far for his weary squad.<\/p>\n
\"This will not be easy because the players are disappointed,
\nthey were so close to the final,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Bahraini coach Srecko Juricic, like Ivankovic a Croat, says
\nhis players were also tired, having been shuttled between
\nBeijing, Jinan, Chengdu and then back to Beijing for their
\nmatches.<\/p>\n
But he insisted one last effort would be made.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/chinese-fans-will-behave-for-asia-cup-final-cfa-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }