Malaysia, Vietnam dance in goal feast in soccer tourney
Malaysia, Vietnam dance in goal feast in soccer tourney
BANGKOK, Thailand (Agencies): Rusdi Suparman scored in the 28th and the 53rd minutes to help Malaysia trounce lowly Laos 5-0 in its preliminary Group B Tiger Cup match Tuesday in the southern town of Songkhla.
In the second match, Vietnam trounced lowly Cambodia 6-0 for its first win in the Tiger Cup competition at the Tinsulanon Stadium.
Rusdi scored the first goal for Malaysia, latching onto a throw-in from Bobby Pian to set the stage for Laos' demolition.
A minute later, Laos goalkeeper Xeunvillay Soulivanh conceded a penalty with a foul on the Malaysian skipper Ahmad Sharul Azhar. Azman Adnan made no mistake in scoring from the spot in the 30th minute.
It was 3-0 in the 43rd minute with Azman's long ball finding substitute Hairuddin Omar in the box. Hairuddin, the Trengganu striker, brought the ball down on his chest, swerved past the goalkeeper and netted the ball.
Goal number four for Malaysia came in the 53rd minute with Rusdi making the most of a through ball from Mohammad Anuar Jusoh to hit a rising shot from 15 meters out, which never gave the Laotian goalkeeper any chance.
The last goal was scored by Ahmad Sharul in the 90th minute with a perfect shot after an equally perfect shot from Azman.
"We persevered and it has paid off. The most important thing here was to get a win today," Malaysia coach Abdul Rahman Ibrahim said.
The victory kept Malaysia's hopes alive for a semifinal berth after its scoreless draw in the opening match against Vietnam on Sunday.
The Malaysians have two tough matches to face - against Cambodia and defending champion Singapore - before the last four stage.
It was a dominant display by the Vietnamese team, runner-up in the same event two years ago and a favorite to qualify for Group B in the semifinals.
Vietnam, held to a scoreless draw against Malaysia in its opening match, went on the offensive from the start with central striker and captain Le Huynh Duc opening the accounts in the 16th minute.
Midfielder Nguyen Hong Son sent in a superb cross from the right and Le, a cult figure back home, headed in to put his team in the lead.
Vietnam continued its assault but failed to find the back of the Cambodian net while Cambodia did manage to trouble the Vietnamese defense with some dangerous moments.
But Vietnam goalkeeper Mai Tien Dung was never really tested.
Cambodia, which lost by a mere 1-0 margin to Singapore in its opening match, defended well to hold the scoreline to 1-0 in the first half.
Vietnamese dominance continued in the second half and it was soon rewarded with a second goal in the 54th minute through Nguyen Van Sy. He sent a curling shot from a corner that beat the defenders and goalkeeper Soun Dara, to sail into goal.
It was Vietnam all the way and in the 56th minute it was 3-0 up when midfielder Nguyen Hong Son scored from a pass by Le on the right flank.
The hapless Cambodian defense broke down as the Vietnamese strikers mounted continuous raids and scored again in the 72nd minute through Vu Cong Tuyen.
Nguyen Van Sy passed to Vu for goal number four.
Cambodia attempted a counter attack but its strikers were off target and never looked like scoring.
Vietnam increased its scoreline with two more goals by Le in the 78th minute and finally Vu in the 85th minute.
The other teams in the nine-nation tournament are Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines and Myanmar. The final will be held in Bangkok on Nov. 18.