Nguyen Cong Phuong (No.10 in red) fooled three defenders with his close control and dribbling before unleashing a superb finish past Malaysian goalie (Photo: VNA) Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – Malaysian media have highlyassessed Vietnam after the reigning champions defeated Malaysia 3-0 in their matchon December 12 at the ongoing AFF Suzuki Cup 2020 in Singapore.
In an article entitled “Vietnam check Malaysia's semi-finalhope with 3-0 win”, Malaysian national news agency Bernama wrote that Malaysia's hope ofbooking an early ticket to the semi-finals suffered a setback when theywere beaten by Vietnam in their Group B match.
“Malaysia were punished for failing to adapt quickly tothe high-intensity match as Vietnam scored twice in a space of fourminutes in the first half, before sealing the game with their third goal in thedying minutes of the match,” it continued.
The result also broke Malaysia’s unbeaten record in thegroup, following their wins over Cambodia and Laos in their first twomatches.
The defeat in the hands of the defending champions pushedMalaysia to third place.
It is also Malaysia's sixth defeat in their last sevenclashes with Vietnam and the fifth for coach Tan Cheng Hoe since taking chargeof the national team in 2017.
In his article published in The Star newspaper, author T.Avineshwaran noted that “Harimau Malaya just can't find a way to douse the fireof the Golden Dragons”, and Malaysia suffered their first defeat in the AFFSuzuki Cup 2020.
“The depleted Malaysian side could not stamp their mark inthe first-half, as Park Hang-seo’s side were quick in their attackingtransitions and were constantly tormenting Tan Cheng Hoe’s team with theirsuperb pressing”.
Astro Awani television news channel reported that with asimilar line-up in the game with Laos, Malaysia could not find a way past seasonedplayers of Vietnam.
To qualify for the semi-finals, Malaysia will have to beatIndonesia in their final group match on December 19, it said./.
