Harimau Malaya Defeat Laos 3-1 In Rain-soaked Bangkok Friendly

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 14 (Bernama) -- The national football team lived up to expectations by defeating Laos 3-1 in a Tier 1 international friendly at the Port Authority of Thailand (PAT) Stadium in Bangkok today.

The first half saw heavy rain and a waterlogged pitch, but the conditions did not stop caretaker coach Pau Marti Vicente’s boys as they scored the opener as early as the sixth minute with a Harith Haiqal Adam Afkar header off a corner.

Malaysia nearly doubled their lead in the 32nd minute when Muhammad Safawi Rasid's powerful shot sailed just over the crossbar.

However, barely a minute later, a lapse in focus saw Malaysia’s defence punished by Laos, coached by South Korean Ha Hyeok-jun, as Kydavone Souvanny calmly slotted the ball in, leveling the score at 1-1.

Malaysia continued to press forward for a second goal but failed to find the net in the remaining minutes of the first half.

Vicente’s tactical substitutions paid off after the break with Stuart Wilkin putting Malaysia back in front through a penalty in the 64th minute after he was fouled by Sengdaovy Hanthavong in the box.

Harimau Malaya then extended their lead when Sergio Aguero converted another penalty in the 83rd minute, sealing the 3-1 victory.

The win marks Malaysia’s eighth consecutive victory over Laos, including their 5-0 triumph at the 2022 AFF Cup at Bukit Jalil National Stadium.

It should also provide the national squad a boost of confidence ahead of their next match against India in Hyderabad on Nov 18.

After the match, Vicente said the pitch conditions affected his players’ rhythm, allowing Laos to score.

“I think it was really a shame. In the first half, given the condition of the pitch, it would have been better to wait and delay the start of the game. But we had to adapt, it took us a little bit of time to adapt to the pitch conditions and the game style that we have to play in this situation.

“I also feel a bit bad because when you prepare something in training and then you find these kinds of conditions, it will be very difficult to play. In the end, we still got the win...” he said in an audio recording shared by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) today.

Vicente said his charges need to work on their finishing, as this area showed clear weakness in today’s match.

“Maybe I think we need to improve on our finishing… we scored from corners and penalties but we missed a lot of open goal chances.

“I think we must correct this, and at least make sure that when we get into the penalty box we are strong and don't miss on those chances,” he said. 

-- BERNAMA