U.23 Malaysia puts coach Kim Sang-sik in a difficult position

In the opening match of SEA Games 33, U.23 Malaysia impressively defeated U.23 Laos with a score of 4-1, temporarily taking the top spot in Group B from U.23 Vietnam.

U.23 Malaysia is not too good but...

In the second match of Group B of the 33rd SEA Games men's football yesterday afternoon (December 6), U.23 Laos caused a surprise at Rajamangala Stadium when they faced a stronger opponent, U.23 Malaysia. In the first match, U.23 Laos showed great progress in terms of expertise, making U.23 Vietnam struggle to win 2-1 thanks to Dinh Bac's double. If against Vietnam, U.23 Laos had to chase the score, then when meeting Malaysia, coach Ha Hyeok-jun's team even took the lead in the 4th minute thanks to Xaysombath Bounphaeng (a player who had come to Vietnam to compete in the Vietnam Youth Student Tournament and international tournaments).

U.23 Malaysia (left) successfully came from behind against Laos to temporarily top Group B.

PHOTO: NHAT THINH

U.23 Laos played simply and entered the game at a high speed to surprise the opponent. The formation distance was well maintained on the home field. The counter-attacks of the team from the land of a million elephants took place quickly, directly attacking the central area with few touches. U.23 Malaysia was somewhat stunned by U.23 Laos' initiative. The midfield of U.23 Malaysia did not compete and control the ball very well. Initially, they were quite stuck in terms of ideas, mainly organizing attacks from the sidelines and then crossing inside to take advantage of the strikers' physical advantage. U.23 Malaysia's equalizer 1-1 (scored by Harry Danish) in the 33rd minute also came from such a move, but the credit went to the defensive player on the U.23 Laos side when he missed the ball incredibly.

Coach Kim Sang-sik will have some thoughts when he sees U.23 Malaysia beat Laos.

The second half saw Laos U.23 pressing strongly, forcing the opponent to retreat to defend. Being too focused on attacking became a double-edged sword, and Malaysia U.23, with their fast wingers, knew how to exploit the gaps when the opponent's formation was high. Haqimi Azim's goal to raise the score to 2-1 (minute 60) came from a cross-field play. This was the turning point of the match, helping the "Tigers" become more agile. The excitement helped Malaysia U.23 score 2 more goals, thanks to Moses Raj (minute 62) and Abu Khalil (minute 90).

U.23 Malaysia defeated U.23 Laos with a final score of 4-1. Thus, U.23 Laos officially stopped at the congress after 2 consecutive losses. U.23 Malaysia with its first victory at the SEA Games rose to the top of Group B (3 points, goal difference +3). Meanwhile, U.23 Vietnam fell to second place with 3 points, goal difference +1. The situation in Group B after 2 matches put coach Kim Sang-sik and his team in a difficult position. Khuat Van Khang and his teammates had to beat U.23 Malaysia in the final match to win the top spot in the group and secure a ticket to the semi-finals.

SEA Games 33 men's football has 9 teams, divided into 3 groups. The groups compete in a round-robin format to calculate points and rank. The first-place team in each group and the second-place team with the best record will qualify for the semi-finals.

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Source: https://thanhnien.vn/u23-malaysia-day-hlv-kim-sang-sik-vao-the-kho-185251206221655246.htm