Malaysian defender wants to pay back debt to Vietnam; Philippines team wants to reach the final of AFF Cup 2020

Malaysian defender cannot forget the bitter defeat against Vietnam

Malaysia's 2-3 aggregate defeat to Vietnam in the 2018 AFF Cup final still haunts defender Shahrul Saad. Ahead of this year's tournament in Singapore, Shahrul Saad wants to win the championship with his team.

"I cannot forget the bitter defeat against Vietnam in 2018. Hopefully we will try our best in this tournament. However, this campaign is very difficult because the teams will give their all when every match is like the final. We need 200% effort to be able to pass the group stage," Astro Awani quoted Shahrul Saad as saying.

Shahrul Saad wants to repay the debt to the Vietnamese team.

At the AFF Cup 2020, Malaysia will be missing some key players who played in the 2018 tournament, but Shahrul Saad is confident that the players’ spirit and hard work in training will help. He also hopes that Malaysia will play well and collect 3 points in the opening match against Cambodia on December 6.

According to the Inquirer, the Philippines team is determined to break the curse at the 2020 AFF Cup, bringing to Singapore a squad with several promising changes. Among them is Spanish striker Bienvenido Maranon, who recently became a Philippine citizen.

The Philippines team attending the AFF Cup 2020 has many new faces. Photo: PPF

“I want to join the Philippines team to reach the final of the AFF Cup 2020, my family also supports me in this. We will devote 200% of our strength, not fighting for ourselves, but fighting for the flag and the national team," Maranon shared.

Before joining the national team, Maranon had to learn the national anthem word for word. According to head coach Scott Cooper, he believes the Philippines can reach the semi-finals and go further with the Spanish striker in the squad.

Lewandowski was awarded the salt ball

"There has been a lot of injustice and Robert Lewandowski is a victim. Therefore, as a member of Wieliczka, I propose that the city symbolically announce that Lewandowski is the best player in the world. Wieliczka will actually do something that was considered a joke a few dozen hours ago," city councilor Kamil Jastrzebski wrote on Twitter.
He also revealed more about the award that will be presented to Lewandowski: "Some people want to give the captain of the Polish team a ball of salt. Salt used to be called white gold. It has a historical and geographical basis. I think despite inflation and the general crisis, Wieliczka will earn enough salt."
Wieliczka, a small town in southern Poland, has a long history of salt mining.

Lewandowski received the consolation prize - Best Striker of the Year - at the 2021 Ballon d'Or Gala at the Chatelet Theatre, Paris on November 29. Photo: Reuters

Lewandowski only finished second in the 2021 Ballon d'Or race. According to France Football, the Polish striker won 580 points, 33 points behind Lionel Messi.