Vietnam 2:0 Malaysia: AFF Championship Match Result

Match report

Vietnam beat Malaysia 2:0 at the My Dinh National Stadium in the semi-finals of the AFF Championship on August 19th. The hosts took control with two second-half strikes from Rafaelson to advance to the final. Malaysia arrived having lost 2:0 to Vietnam just three days earlier, but could not find a response this time either.

Rafaelson opened the scoring in the 62nd minute, finishing one of Vietnam's seven big chances. He collected a yellow card five minutes later, perhaps a sign of his involvement. The second goal came in the 89th minute, and by then the match was already decided. Malaysia's keeper managed seven saves but could only watch from distance.

To be fair, Malaysia had more possession at 52 per cent, yet they created just two big chances compared to Vietnam's seven. The visitors attempted 18 crosses but completed only two, while Vietnam's 17 crosses yielded eight successful deliveries. And here's the thing about football — pressure matters more than passing triangles when the game is on the line.

Vietnam registered 21 shots on target in total, with 10 on target and 11 off. Malaysia managed four shots on target from 14 attempts. The hosts made 18 clearances and won 14 of 25 aerial duels. Malaysia's goalkeeper had more work, making seven saves to Vietnam's four. The statistics tell you what the eye already saw: Malaysia dominated possession without purpose.

This victory extends Vietnam's unbeaten run to five matches and puts them in the final of the tournament. Malaysia's recent form had been inconsistent — a win against the Philippines followed by a loss to Thailand. The hosts, meanwhile, have now beaten Malaysia twice in eight days. The final awaits, and Vietnam will want to carry this momentum through.

Prepared from match data

Key numbers

Possession, % 48 – 52

Shots on target 10 – 4

Shots off target 11 – 3

Big chances 7 – 2

⇄ 35' S. Aguero — Substitution ⇄ 59' Nguyen Hai Long — Substitution ⇄ 59' Hen Do Hoang — Substitution ⚽ 62' Rafaelson — Goal 🟨 65' Rafaelson — Yellow card ⇄ 70' Nguyen Hoang Duc — Substitution ⇄ 71' T. T. Phan — Substitution 🟨 72' Nguyen Van Vi — Yellow card ⇄ 79' M. Sumareh — Substitution ⇄ 79' Paulo Josue — Substitution ⇄ 80' Doan Van Hau — Substitution ⚽ 89' Rafaelson — Goal ⇄ 90+1' Z. El Basheer — Substitution

Match events

35' 0:0 Malaysia Substitution S. Aguero off: S. Ahmad
59' 0:0 Vietnam Substitution Nguyen Hai Long off: Rafaelson
59' 0:0 Vietnam Substitution Hen Do Hoang off: Geovane
62' 1:0 Vietnam Goal Rafaelson
65' 1:0 Vietnam Yellow card Rafaelson
70' 1:0 Vietnam Substitution Nguyen Hoang Duc off: Le Pham Thanh Long
71' 1:0 Vietnam Substitution T. T. Phan off: Nguyen Van Vi
72' 1:0 Vietnam Yellow card Nguyen Van Vi
79' 1:0 Malaysia Substitution M. Sumareh off: H. Azim
79' 1:0 Malaysia Substitution Paulo Josue off: H. Fayyadh
80' 1:0 Vietnam Substitution Doan Van Hau off: Dinh Quang Kiet
89' 2:0 Vietnam Goal Rafaelson assist: Nguyen Dinh Bac
90+1' 2:0 Malaysia Substitution Z. El Basheer off: E. M. Nur Shakir

Statistics

48 Possession, % 52

10 Shots on target 4

11 Shots off target 3

7 Big chances 2

87 Attacks 95

11 Corners 7

7 Fouls 7

5 Free kicks 7

1 Offsides 0

2 Yellow cards 0

0 Red cards 0

10 Goal kicks 9

22 Throw-ins 18

All statistics

14/2556% Aerial duels 11/2544%

63 Backward passes 58

5 Blocked shots 1

18 Clearances 21

8/1747% Crosses 2/1811%

13/2162% Dribbles 7/1450%

51 Failed passes 46

4 Goalkeeper saves 7

3 Interceptions 6

18 Key passes 6

20/3754% Long passes 13/2552%

63 Passes into the final third 57

190 Passes in the opposition half 206

210 Passes in own half 221

0.38 Shot accuracy 0.50

16 Shots inside the box 6

17/2665% Tackles 19/2673%

383 Total passes 409

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