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Naturalized defender Bruno Casimir was the center of attention of yet another controversial moment in the 2021/22 Liga 3 Indonesia season. The Cameroon-born player, plying his trade with PS Siak, was caught on camera allowing a loose ball to venture deep into his team’s defense, allowing Serpong City’s Yohannes Gula to score his side’s second goal in a thumping 4-1 win. Former Arema FC and Persis Solo player Bruno was immediately accused of performing match-fixing due to his bizarre conduct in the build-up towards Gula’s goal.
With their chances of qualifying into next season’s Liga 2 Indonesia already dead and buried, PS Siak host a Serpong City side who are still hoping to accompany Persikab Kabupaten Bandung out of Group BB and into the second tier on Sunday. The Red Beast must win by a margin of three goals while at the same time hoping that Group BB rivals Karo United fail to win against Persikab in their own match which was being held simultaneously.
As the match entered the 42nd minute, PS Siak found themselves 1-0 down, however, the Riau-based side had been awarded a free-kick from the midfield. As a PS Siak player was preparing to take the free-kick, Bruno instructed the player to spray the ball out wide towards the team’s right-back, however said player was already being closely marked by a Serpong City player.
With that in mind, PS Siak’s free-kick player sent the ball straight towards Bruno, however the defender simply walked away from the ball as it rolled next to him. Seizing the advantage, Gula immediately latched onto the loose ball and plundered home Serpong City’s second goal of the game.
Serpong City ended the match as 4-1 winners, however at the same time, Karo United stunned Persikab 2-1 to snatch the group’s semifinal ticket from right under the Laskar Dalem Bandung‘s noses. Karo United’s win meant that it was the Laskar Simbisa who advanced into the Liga 2 alongside Persikab, condemning both Serpong City and PS Siak to another year in the Liga 3.
Bruno’s blatantly lax defending immediately came underneath the scrutiny of the Indonesian football fraternity, who were already critical of the Liga 3 due to the many controversies that the league had seen throughout this season. Immediately accusations of match-fixing were directed towards the 35-year old player, with calls for the match to be investigated by the Football Federation of Indonesia (PSSI) being demanded by football fans who were fed up with the Liga 3’s many controversies this season.
The player who took that fateful free-kick took to Instagram to tell his side of the story, stating that he was subjected with an expletive from Bruno after he had completely missed the incoming ball, implying that it was the player’s fault for allowing Serpong City to score even though it was Bruno who had allowed the ball to simply roll past him that led up to Gula’s strike.
Bruno himself denied all allegations of match-fixing, telling Bolasport that he’s a “professional, honest, and hard-working player” who “earned all of his income.”
“All my life I never enjoy any dirty money,” Bruno said, who went on to state that what happened during the match was a result of severe miscommunication between him and his teammates.
The Bruno debacle and the outrage that surrounds it inevitably brought the incident to the attention of the PSSI, who has vowed to perform a thorough investigation of the match.