Failure to beat Vietnam may cost Malaysia a place in the semis

06/12/2009
By ERIC SAMUEL
Source: The Star

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals in the SEA Games men’s football competition would very much depend on the outcome of the clash against Vietnam at the Main Stadium of the National Sports Complex in Vientiane today (4pm).

A win should put the national Under-23 side virtually through to the last four with six points from Group A. And then they require only one win from the remaining fixtures against Cambodia (Dec 8) and Thailand (Dec 11) to clinch a semi-final ticket.

But there is also the danger that anything less than a victory against Vietnam may also cost them a place in the knockout stage.

It is a tricky situation because the outcome of this match could see the battle for the semi-finals go down to the wire or even to be decided on goal difference.

National coach K. Rajagopal is aware of the high stakes in today’s match.

“Looking at the outcome of the Thailand-Vietnam game (1-1) shows that both the teams are of equal strength. It is going to be a tight situation in the remaining fixtures, especally against Vietnam and Thailand. We are aware of our position if we are to win, lose or draw against these two teams.

“But I prefer to take it one match at a time and focus on our mission against Vietnam first,” said Rajagopal. Only four days ago, the Malaysians were in the driver’s seat after the opening round victory over Timor Leste (11-0) but the situation is different now as defending champions Thailand and Vietnam hold the advantage after having played their opening round match to a 1-1 draw. This means Rajagopal’s men cannot afford to lose against Thailand or Vietnam.

Thailand and Vietnam lead the standings with four points each after two games while Malaysia have three points from one game. Cambodia and Timor Leste have yet to win any points.
On Friday, Thailand and Vietnam chalked up easy wins over Cambodia and Timor Leste respectively scoring similar 4-0 margins.

Even though Malaysia hold a better goal average over Vietnam at the moment, things could change in the final round fixtures as Vietnam play Cambodia while Malaysia wrap up their campaign against eight-time winners Thailand.