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| (L-R) Indonesia's Ahmad Bustomi, Bambang Pamungkas and Irfan Haarys Bachdim celebrate after beating Thailand during their qualifying round soccer match at the 2010 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Cup soccer tournament in Jakarta on Tuesday - Photo: Reuters |
HCMC – 2008 runners-up Thailand ended their campaign at the AFF Suzuki Cup 2010 after losing 1-2 to hosts Indonesia in Jakarta on Tuesday while Malaysia secured another semifinal’s ticket as they crushed Laos 5-1.
It was the biggest surprise after the favorite Thailand dropped out of the tournament though the Thais joined the tournament aiming for their fourth AFF title.
The match between Indonesia and their bitter rivals Thailand attracted much attention from the public. The Thai side wanted a victory to qualify for the semifinals in the make-or-break match while the hosts, who had already took the semifinals berth as the group leader, showed a great determination to win the game.
The hosts started the game without midfielder Firman Utina in their lineups and Thailand began the game with strongest players, including midfielder Thonglao and strikers Dangda and Kirati.
The visiting team dominated the game from the first minutes and they placed more pressure on their opponents aiming to open the score while the Indonesian players played defensively and relied on rare counter attacks.
With strong attacks, Thai players created some scoring chances in the first half but their players lost all the chances, leaving the score at 0-0 upon the referee’s whistle at the end of the half.
After the break, Thailand continuously organized more attacks on Indonesian defending lines but the Thais had to wait until the 68th minute when Suree Sukha opened for his team with a superb kick from inside the box.
However, two late goals by veteran Bampang Pamungkas destroyed a victory for three-time champions Thailand. Substitution Bampang made no mistake in two penalty kicks in the 80th and 88th minutes to seal Indonesia’s third win from as many matches.
Meanwhile, both Malaysia and Laos began the game quickly, Malaysia having a good chance in the first minutes and Mohd Amirulhadi Zainal opened the score for his team just four minutes into the game with a header.
Lamnao Singto leveled for Laos just four minutes later with an unstoppable header before Amri helped the Malaysian side advance in the 41st minute after receiving the ball from Norshahrul from the right wing.
The Malaysian side dominated throughout the second, substitution Bin Zainal restoring the lead in the 74th minute and Bin Talaha netting for Malaysia just three minutes later before Bin Jasuli finalized the game at 5-1 in the 90th minute.
With the victory, Malaysia went through to the semifinals as the group runners-up, five points behind leaders Indonesia. Third-placed Thailand had two points and bottom-placed Laos just had one point.
Group B will be decided on Wednesday when co-hosts Vietnam take on three-time champions Singapore at My Dinh National Stadium at 7:30 p.m. and the Philippines meet Myanmar at Nam Dinh’s Thien Truong Stadium in the same time.
The hosts, who lost 0-2 to Philippines on Sunday, must win to book a place in the semifinals while the Philippines just need a draw with their opponents to guarantee their progress to the last four stage.
After two games, the Philippines and Singapore have four points each but the Philippines topped the standings of group B thanks to the goal difference. Third-placed Vietnam secured three points from one win and one loss, whereas Myanmar exited from the tournament with two losses.
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