Malaysian goalkeeper says something surprising before the second leg of the AFF Cup final

During the 90 minutes of the first leg of the AFF Cup 2018 final in Bukit Jalil, the Vietnamese team created a series of dangerous opportunities, but only took advantage of 2 situations to score against the host Malaysia. In addition, there were 5 face-to-face situations created, but Ha Duc Chinh, Nguyen Tien Linh and Phan Van Duc were all unable to defeat Farizal Marlias.

Before the second leg of the AFF Cup final, Malaysia's number 1 goalkeeper admitted that Vietnam will be very strong when returning to their home stadium, My Dinh. However, the opportunity is not yet over for coach Tan Cheng Hoe and his team.

“Vietnam will be formidable when they return home, but don’t forget we beat them before. In the 2014 AFF Cup, Malaysia lost 1-2 at home, then beat Vietnam 4-2 at My Dinh,” Marlias told NST.

“Vietnamese players are fast and extremely skillful. We must overcome this before entering the second leg of the final. Hopefully, Malaysia’s personnel will not be disrupted in the upcoming 90 decisive minutes.”

Malaysian goalkeeper conceded the second goal in the first leg of the final. Photo: Trung Kien

In the first leg of the final, Malaysia did not have the services of Aidil Zafuan due to injury and defender Syahmi Safari due to suspension. Goalkeeper Marlias said his teammates completed the task well. "Without two important pillars, Zafuan and Safari, the replacements completed the task excellently. We were not inferior at all," he affirmed.

“The first leg of the final was a lesson for us as we made too many mistakes. Looking forward to the next match, Malaysia must focus on every move, otherwise we may pay a very high price.”

The second leg of the AFF Cup 2018 final will take place at 7:30 p.m. on December 15. To win the championship for the second time in history, Marlias and his teammates must beat Vietnam, or draw 3-3 or more, or draw 2-2 to enter a penalty shootout.