KUALA LUMPUR, July 26 — A brace from Harimau Malaya captain Paulo Josue ensured Malaysia’s winning start to their ASEAN Cup campaign by trouncing Myanmar 2-1 in their Group B opener today.
In the match at Thuwunna Stadium in Yangon, Myanmar, the hosts opened the scoring through Myat Kaung Khant in the 10th minute.
Stung by the early setback, interim head coach Tan Cheng Hoe’s men rallied to reorganise their play in search of an equaliser.
Malaysia came close to restoring parity in the 40th minute through naturalised player Endrick Dos Santos, but his shot was saved by Myanmar goalkeeper Zin Nyi Nyi, leaving the hosts ahead at the break.
Entering the second half, Malaysia continued to press the opponent’s defence and finally broke through in the 52nd minute when Josue scored with a left-foot strike to make it 1-1.
Just five minutes later, Malaysia were awarded a penalty after Harimau Malaya winger Mohamadou Sumareh was brought down inside the box.
Josue made no mistake, calmly converting the spot-kick to put Malaysia ahead 2-1.
The hosts responded with relentless attacks, but a resilient Harimau Malaya backline ensured Myanmar failed to equalise, securing the 2-1 victory.
The result puts Malaysia top of Group B with three points.
Malaysia next face Laos on July 28, then Thailand on August 1, and the Philippines in a Group B closer on August 8.
Under the tournament format, the top two teams from each group advance to the semi-finals.
Malaysia exited in the group stage in the previous edition. Their last ASEAN Cup title was in 2010.
