Defender Xuan Hop’s own goal destroyed Vietnam’s hopes of winning the men’s football championship at the 25th SEA Games in Vientiane on Thursday.

Vietnamese football fans have waited for 50 years for the SEA Games championship, and now they still have to wait for another chance.

The team started the match with great confidence and in high spirits since they had a 3-1 win over Malaysia in the group stage under their belt.

The Malaysians knew how strong Vietnam was, so they chose to improve their defense and wait for their opportunities.

They stood firm against all attacks from the Vietnamese players. With better control of the first half, Vietnam came close several times in the first half; but Malaysia had their chances, too.

After the break, Malaysia began to play more strongly, putting more pressure on Vietnam while some Vietnamese players showed signs of exhaustion and a lack of concentration and confidence.

Malaysia’s relentless attacks late in the second half resulted in the only goal of the match for them less than 10 minutes from full time.

Defender Xuan Hop tried to kick away a cross from the left flank by Aidil Zaquan of Malaysia but his unsuccessful effort deflected the direction of the ball and it completely defeated Vietnam’s goalkeeper Bui Tan Truong.

In the fight for the third place in an earlier match, Singapore beat hosts Laos 3-1.

Source: Thanh Nien