Malaysian media: 'Malaysia will hardly beat Vietnam'

Most Malaysian reporters working in Myanmar believe that it will be very difficult for Malaysia to beat Vietnam in the match taking place at 3:30 p.m. today (November 23) at the AFF Suzuki Cup 2016.

Editor Mohd Rais (TV3 channel): Draw 1-1

Editor Mohd Rais. Photo: NK

VN had a smooth start while Malaysia was still full of worries after the hard-fought victory over Cambodia. Although the media was surprised by Cambodia's progress, the victory of coach Ong Kim Swee and his team still did not really satisfy us in terms of playing style.

Accordingly, the Malaysian defense exposed many loopholes against Cambodia. People can see that the full-backs sometimes go too high. For example, Matthew Davies, this right-back of Australian origin has very good technique but is still young and prone to mistakes. Therefore, when he goes high, the players playing on the left wing of the Vietnamese team can take advantage of this to counterattack. As far as I remember, Vietnam has a very good player on this wing (Thanh Luong - NV). In addition, the Vietnamese striker with Cong Vinh is always a threat.

But that does not mean Malaysia should play defensively against Vietnam. In case of equal points, we may lose in terms of goal difference because we only beat Cambodia by 1 goal. Therefore, we really need a win in this match. In my opinion, although Vietnam is stronger than Malaysia, Coach Ong Kim Swee's players should still play offensively. I predict this will be a draw with a score of 1-1.

Reporter Vijhay Vick (FourFourTwo magazine): Vietnam has more opportunities

Reporter Vijhay Vick. Photo: NK

I watched the match between Vietnam and Myanmar and was very impressed with their performance. Myanmar was the home team, with a big advantage from the stands. When they equalized, I thought that Vietnam would have a hard time holding on because Myanmar was very motivated and played aggressively. But Vietnam still scored to win the match. That proves the experience of the Vietnamese players and facing such opponents is always very difficult.

Meanwhile, Malaysia has a lot of new players in the AFF Cup 2016. Although they are very eager to compete and prove themselves, experience is still a weakness of this young team. I think in terms of spirit, the Malaysian players performed very well against Cambodia. However, they have a lot to improve in terms of organization. Malaysia should probably take the initiative to play defensive counter-attack because Vietnam with skillful midfielders, especially the player wearing the number 14 shirt (Xuan Truong) is stronger than us in terms of ball control. I think Vietnam will win if they continue to show the same performance as against Myanmar.

According to TTO