The Vietnamese national team and a warning from Bangkok.
(Baonghean.vn) - Both Thailand and Vietnam had an advantage going into the second leg of the semi-final, but Malaysia managed to squeeze through a narrow gap to reach the final. This serves as a warning to Vietnam ahead of their second leg semi-final against the Philippines.
The advantage of a 2-1 away win is significant, but if Coach Park Hang-seo's players don't perform well, they could still follow in Thailand's footsteps. The chances of Sven-Goran Eriksson's team advancing are slim, but it's not impossible.
Three worst-case scenarios
The worst-case scenario is that Vietnam loses by more than two goals, in which case the tragic scene at Rajamangala Stadium (Bangkok) will be repeated at My Dinh National Stadium, where Vietnamese fans have witnessed the national team's defeat in many crucial matches. The probability of this happening is not high because coach Sven-Goran Eriksson no longer has many players who can convert matches into goals.
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| A warning from Bangkok. Photo: Internet |
Park Hang-seo's team would still be eliminated if the Philippines only won by one goal but scored more than two goals (for example, 3-2, 4-3, 5-4, etc.), in which case they would also advance according to the away goals rule. No one believed that the host nation Vietnam's defense, which had only conceded one goal in five matches, would let this happen.
If the Philippines bring the score to 1-2, the two teams will have to go into extra time. According to Article 7, Clause 3 of the newly added AFF Cup 2018 Regulations, the away goals rule still applies in extra time. This means that if the score remains 0-0, the two teams will proceed to a penalty shootout. However, if Vietnam wins or draws in extra time, they will be eliminated. This is considered the most likely scenario in the worst-case scenario at My Dinh Stadium.
Hanoi Promise
Many people believe that the dream of winning the 2018 AFF Cup has grown bigger since Thailand "actively avoided Vietnam" in the final. But in our opinion, Thailand is not a formidable opponent in this AFF Cup; to be precise, Malaysia is more dangerous.
Looking at how coach Milovan Rajevac "humbled" the "The Azkals" in Bacolod, or how Thailand deliberately parked the bus to play for a 0-0 draw at Malaysia's Bukit Jalil stadium and tried to settle the win-loss outcome at their home Rajamangala Stadium, one realizes that the "War Elephants" are no longer as strong as they used to be.
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| Having missed the 0-2 defeat, Malaysia captain Zaquan Adha extended an invitation to the Vietnamese players for a rematch in the final. Photo: AFF |
In the second leg of the semi-final, Thailand still played with a low defensive line, instead of pressing whenever Malaysia had possession, forcing creative midfielder Sanrawat to often drift to the wing or drop deep to find the ball, leaving almost no impression whatsoever.
Thailand was eliminated because Adisak Kraisorn missed a penalty, but looking at the whole season, it would have been more logical if Malaysia or Vietnam had won. Coach Milovan Rajevac lacked a clear tactical plan, and it wasn't simply a matter of Kraisorn's psychological insecurity.
Compared to the match against Vietnam in the group stage, Malaysian coach Tan Cheng Hoe made only three changes: captain Zaquan Adha replaced striker Fikri. The left wing was occupied by Safawi and N. Naim, not Akhyar and Andik as in the match at My Dinh Stadium. Tan Cheng Hoe's intention was quite clear: "attacking from above, defending from below," with Safawi being more effective in attack than Akhyar, and N. Naim focusing more on defense than his senior teammate Andik.
But the biggest change was on the Rajamangala Stadium pitch, where the winger duo Safawi and M. Sumareh were much more energetic. It seemed that the naturalized player M. Sumareh, having just finished his warm-up, was playing with great enthusiasm.
Furthermore, while at My Dinh Stadium they held 69% of the time and only had 7 shots, 2 of which were on target, at their home stadium Bukit Jalil they took 23 shots, in the return leg, Tan Cheng Hoe's team only had 5 shots but they scored 2 goals against Thailand.
The "Hanoi Promise" of Malaysian captain Zaquan Adha is therefore all the more interesting. It's certain that Tan Cheng Hoe will bring Zaquan Adha onto the field, but whether Van Quyet or he will lift the gold trophy remains to be seen!