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| Malaysia's Safee Sali (front) celebrates scoring their first goal against Vietnam during their semi-final first leg match of the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) 2010 soccer tournament in Kuala Lumpur 0n Wednesday - Photo: Reuters |
HCMC – Defending champions Vietnam face a difficult task to advance to the final of the AFF Suzuki Cup 2010 after losing 0-2 to Malaysia their first leg semifinals at Bukit Jalil Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Wednesday.
Safee Sali scored both goals for the home side in the second half. The Malaysian striker twice beat Vietnam goalkeeper Bui Tan Truong with a header in the 60th minute and an unstoppable kick in penalty area in the 79th minute.
At the pre-match press conference, Vietnam’s coach Henrique Calisto and Malaysia’s coach K. Rajagobal both expressed their strong winning determinations on the threshold of the crucial clash between the two sides.
Vietnam began the game without two defenders, Doan Viet Cuong and Huynh Quang Thanh, and midfielder Phan Van Tai Em, due to injuries, while midfielder Nguyen Trong Hoang, who had scored two goals, had been given a red card in the game against Singapore last Wednesday.
Vietnam’s coach Calisto made some changes with defenders Nguyen Huy Hoang and Tran Dinh Dong coming for Doan Viet Cuong and Huynh Quang Thanh. Midfielder Le Tan Tai replaced Phan Van Tai Em while midfielder Nguyen Thanh Hung made his debut from the beginning.
Though backed by the enthusiastic support from Malaysian spectators, Vietnamese players began in high spirit and were very confident from the beginning. Coach Calisto’s players were on the attack from the start of the game in search for a goal in the first minutes while Malaysia relied on rare counter attacks.
Calisto made a change in the second half when midfielder Nguyen Minh Chau replaced Phan Thanh Hung. The visitors continuously dominated the ball possession in the first minutes of the second half, however, the Vietnamese forwarders wasted their scoring chances.
Vietnam goalkeeper Bui Tan Truong, who was a hero as he denied all Singapore shots and headers with several brilliant saves in the final game in group stage, made a serious mistake in the game when the goalkeeper let Safee Sali’s header slip through his hands and into the net in the 60th minute.
Safee Sali doubled for the Malaysian side in the 79th minute as the striker netted in the penalty box after goalie Bui Tan Truong saved the ball from captain Safiq Rahim’s kick.
Though striker Nguyen Viet Thang, a first-choice striker of coach Calisto, and midfielder Nguyen Quang Hai replaced Le Tan Tai and Pham Thanh Luong in the last minutes. Vietnamese players created some scoring chances in the last minutes but their players also lost all the chances, leaving the score at 2-0 upon the referee’s whistle at the end of the game.
With the home win, Malaysia moved closer to reaching the 2010 ASEAN Football Federation Cup, also called AFF Suzuki Cup 2010 final. The Malaysian side even suffer a 1-0 loss in the second leg of the semifinals in Hanoi on Saturday enough to qualify the final game.
Meanwhile, the Vietnamese side need to win in the second clash with the score at least 2-0 in their home ground on Saturday to keep their hope of reaching the final of the biennial tournament.
The other semi-final game between host Indonesia and the Philippines will be played on Thursday and Sunday at the Geloga Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta.
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