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Putting it briefly: Bhayangkara on the brink of winning Liga 1
Hip hooray: Bhayangkara FC celebrates by lifting its manager Simon McMenemy (top) after defeating Madura United 3-1 in the senior league Liga 1 soccer match at Gelora Bangkalan Stadium in Bangkalan, East Java, on Wednesday
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span class="inline inline-center">Hip hooray: Bhayangkara FC celebrates by lifting its manager Simon McMenemy (top) after defeating Madura United 3-1 in the senior league Liga 1 soccer match at Gelora Bangkalan Stadium in Bangkalan, East Java, on Wednesday. Bhayangkara tops the leaderboard with 68 points.(Antara/Saiful Bahri)
Bhayangkara FC, owned by the National Police, is on the brink of sealing Liga 1, the country’s top soccer league, with one game left and a solid 68 points already in its pocket.
The Indonesian Soccer Association (PSSI) awarded Bhayangkara with three points after a match versus Mitra Kukar on Nov. 3. In the match, Mitra Kukar wrongly played Mohammad Sissoko, who was serving a two-game ban.
Because of the violation, PSSI sanctioned Mitra Kukar with a 3-0 loss. Meanwhile, the original score of the Nov. 3 match was 1-1.
With the extra points and a 3-1 win on Wednesday against Madura United, Bhayangkara has garnered 68 points, closely followed by Bali United with 65 points.
On paper, Bhayangkara is the likely champion of this season as it has a better head-to-head record against Bali United, Antara reported. However, Mitra Kukar is allowed to make an appeal over the ruling, which may change the outcome.
In response, Bhayangkara said, “Bhayangkara FC has won the most matches throughout the season. In all of those victories, we fought by ourselves, and didn’t receive any help from any party.”
The team has recorded 22 wins, two draws and nine loses from 33 games. Bhayangkara is set to play Persija Jakarta on Sunday as the season nears a close.
