Former Chinese international convicted in bar brawl

XI'AN, March 5 (Xinhua) -- Former Chinese international Wang Wanpeng has been sentenced to ten months in prison after being involved in a bar brawl.

The 38-year-old, who served as an assistant coach at Shaanxi Chang'an Athletic FC, was found guilty of launching a physical assault on two bar employees on July 25, 2020, in Liuba county, about 300 kilometers south of Xi'an, according to the verdict released by a Liuba court on Thursday.

Wang, along with two colleagues of Shaanxi Chang'an Athletic, assaulted the bar employees after being declined to sing karaoke late that night, the verdict said.

One of the bar employees suffered a slight bone fracture in his right hand, according to the verdict.

Wang, who was called up by the Chinese national team in 2008, apologized on his Weibo account on Thursday.

"I feel deeply ashamed and remorseful for breaching the law in conflicting with the bar employees in Liuba," he said.

"I brought shame to the profession of a football coach with my unreasonable and irresponsible behavior," he wrote on the social media.

"I am very sorry for the victims of the accident and also for bringing damage to the public image of football with my actions," he said.

Shaanxi Chang'an Athletic FC said on Thursday that Wang and his two colleagues have been sacked.

"The club has terminated the contracts with those three persons. The club in no way tolerates any breach of the law," the second-tier club said on Weibo. Enditem