3-5-2 FOOTBALL

AFF CUP FINAL (SECOND-LEG): MALAYSIA 3 - THAILAND 2 *THAILAND WINS 4-3 ON AGREGATE Thailand ended their 12-year drought in the AFF Suzuki Cup as late goals by Charyl Chappuis and Chanathip Songkrasin gave them a dramatic 4-3 aggregate victory over Malaysia in the second leg of the final at Bukit Jalil National Stadium on Saturday. Trailing 2-0 from the first leg in Bangkok, Malaysia struck back on home soil and took the lead when Safiq Rahim scored his second goal of the game with a 58th minute free-kick to make it 3-0 after he had converted a seventh minute penalty and Indra Putra Mahayuddin had headed home just before half-time. But Chappuis netted a precious away goal for the War Elephants after Farizal Marlias had fumbled a Sarach Yooyen free-kick in the 82nd minute and Chanathip sealed the Thai victory with a fine strike on the counter-attack three minutes from time. Having been the last Thailand captain to lift the ASEAN trophy in 2002, coach Kiati...

​AFF CUP FINAL (FIRST-LEG): THAILAND 2 - MALAYSIA 0 Thailand had the better advantage ahead of the AFF Suzuki Cup Final second leg after earning a 2-0 win over Malaysia in Bangkok yesterday. A 72nd minute penalty from Charyl Chappuis and a strike from Krokriet Thawikan put Thailand on course to win the AFF Suzuki Cup for the fourth time. ​Malaysia gave Thailand problems for much of the game playing bravely in midfield and staying strong at the back but the Thais excelled in the last 20 minutes. However, coach Dollah Salleh is confident that his team still have a good chance in the return leg at Kuala Lumpur on Saturday. Malaysia have won the prestigious title once in 2010. Photos by: Khairol Rizal Buhari | Tigers Super Sports CreativeImage Sports Network

AFF SUZUKI CUP: MALAYSIA 1 - VIETNAM 2 Vietnam seized control of their AFF Suzuki Cup semi-final against Malaysia as a fine second-half strike by Nguyen Van Quyet earned them a come-from-behind 2-1 win in the first leg at Shah Alam Stadium on Sunday. Both teams had key players ruled out through suspension with captain Shukor Adan and forward Amri Yahyah missing for the home side and midfielder Vu Minh Tuan banned for Vietnam. The visitors made a vibrant start and should have taken the lead after only five minutes when Le Cong Vinh fed an unmarked Ngo Hoang Thinh who curled the ball narrowly wide from the edge of the Malaysia box. ​Malaysia struggled with the pace of the Vietnamese attack early on but took the lead through a Safiq Rahim penalty after 14 minutes. Vo Huy Toan netted a deserved equaliser in the 32nd minute after a fine counter-attack for the visitors. Van Quyet then fired home the winner on the hour to give his side a precious advantage to take into the return m...