The host's starting XI featured nine overseas players of Malaysian origin - Lavere Corbin-Ong (Barbadian descent), Joao Figueiredo (Brazil), Jon Irazabal (Spain), Dion Cools (Belgium), Facundo Garces (Argentina), Nooa Laine (Finland), Hector Hevel (Netherlands), Rodrigo Holgado (Argentina) and Matthew Davies (Australia).
Several of these players, such as Corbin-Ong, Davies, Aiman, Hazmi and Cools, had previously faced Vietnam. The rest, including Figueiredo, Irazabal, Garces and Holgado, were naturalized just weeks before the match. Imanol Machuca, also of Argentine origin, featured as a substitute.
The arrival of these new recruits significantly increased the team's quality. In midfield, Laine, Hevel and Figueiredo completely overpowered Vietnam players, with Chau Ngoc Quang (C) struggling to make an impact.
Vietnam's attacking line produced only one notable chance in the first half, when Ngoc Quang (number 8) failed to finish in a one-on-one situation with Syihan Hazmi.
His attacking partners, Nguyen Van Vi and Nguyen Hai Long (number 12), also had minimal contributions.
Defensively, Garces and Irazabal impressed with their composure and experience, teaming up with Davies to form a solid three-man backline that effectively shut down Vietnam’s attackers.
Garces (R) plays for Deportivo Alaves in La Liga, while Irazabal is a regular at Sabah in the Azerbaijan Premier League.
Figueiredo (number 14) opened the scoring in the 49th minute after capitalizing on a midfield error by Vo Hoang Minh Khoa. He ran forward and took a long-range shot that deflected off Do Duy Manh, looping over Filip into the net.
This marked a dream debut for Figueiredo, which ended Malaysia’s 11-year winless streak against Vietnam.
Ten minutes later, a defensive lapse on Vietnam’s right flank allowed Aiman to cross. Under pressure, Holgado cleverly delayed his shot to trick the defender before slotting it past Filip at the near post.
Despite being two goals down, Vietnam pushed forward. Coach Kim Sang-sik said the tactic aimed to reduce pressure on the defense and possibly salvage the head-to-head goal difference. However, the aggressive approach backfired as Malaysia scored two more goals.
In the 67th minute, Cools launched a counterattack and set up Aiman, whose cross was tapped in by Corbin-Ong at the back post. Then in the 88th minute, Cools headed in from a corner to seal the 4-0 win.
This was Vietnam's biggest-ever defeat to Malaysia and their first loss to them since the 2014 AFF Cup (now ASEAN Cup).
The match was also forgettable for French-Vietnamese debutant Cao Quang Vinh Pendant (number 13), who admitted the team’s physical condition dropped sharply after a goalless first half.
“We won’t give up on Asian Cup qualification. There are still games to play, including the home match against Malaysia in March 2026,” he said.
Coach Kim Sang-sik’s tactics collapsed early, with both central defenders Nguyen Thanh Chung and Bui Tien Dung forced off due to injury in the first half. The coach was already without eight key players through injury for the match.
Kim acknowledged that Malaysia naturalized players performed better than expected. The 0-4 loss marks the biggest defeat of his managerial career. Failure to qualify for the 2027 Asian Cup would mean he falls short of the primary goal set in his contract with the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF). The rematch against Malaysia on March 31, 2026, could be decisive for his future.
