Malaysia qualified for the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup final after holding defending champions Vietnam to a scoreless draw at My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi, our first final since 1996. mad redo1 sat his bums again at T-Cafe with his GanuSoccer.Net GSN mates to watch the match.
Photo was taken from www.affsuzukicup.com
As the match went on it was obvious that Malaysia Coach Rajagopal Krishnasamy had planned to park buses in front of his team's goal with the intention to defend the two goal lead from the first leg at all cost. In front of Muslim Ahmad and his line of defenders was another layer comprised of midfielders Amar Rohidan and Mohamad Safiq Rahim with flankers Kunanlan Subramaniam and Amirul Hadi Zainal deployed more as defenders rather than as attackers.
The approach drew much criticisms from many Malaysia supporters at the cafe. For every clearance made by Malaysian players it would be accompanied by howl of disappointment at seeing the ball coming back as Vietnam continued attacking relentlessly.
Photo was taken from www.affsuzukicup.com
Perhaps Rajagopal believed that his options were limited thus decided to deploy a tactic usually seen in the English Premier League when teams such as Wigan Athletics or Sunderland paying a visit to Arsenal or Manchester United.
It was a rather dangerous tactic which could go either way but fortunately for the Malaysians the home side failed to make the most of the ball which seemed to be glued to their feet throughout the match. Even when they managed to beat a Malaysian player there would be another covering behind him thus limiting them to taking shots from afar or trying to win free-kicks by simulating fouls.
The tactic backfired for Vietnam when Pham Thanh Luong was booked for simulating a foul as he ran into the box and with Kunanlan was about to tackle him. However the Malaysian player held his foot back but at the time Thanh Luong was already on his way down.
The incident unfolded right in front of referee Kim Sang-woo who had no hesitation in flashing the yellow card to the culprit. It was his second of the night thus resulting in a teary walk back to the dressing room.
Khairul Fahmi was not really tested with no significant save required from the Kelantan custodian as Vietnam failed to hit the target with most of their shots. The ones that were on target did not really trouble the goalkeeper.
Malaysia had their chances with Shahrul Idlan Talaha going close with a long range shot in the first half but it curled on the wrong side of the post. The introduction of 2010 Super League Topscorer, Ashaari Shamsudin injected more zest into the attack and was unlucky not to silence the home crowd when his low shot just crept outside the near post after cutting inside from the flanks.
There were chances too for skipper Mohamad Safiq Rahim, Amri Yahyah and two goal hero from the first leg Safee Sali but these Selangor players just could not convert the openings that came their way. For many Malaysian approach was a bit Machavellian but the same set of fans seemed to feel the joy at seeing the nation qualify for their first senior final since 1996.
Now, it will be either the Indonesians or the Pinoys on Boxing Day at Bukit Jalil. Will mad redo1 be there to support the Tigers? Watch this space.
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