Vietnam head coach Park Hang-seo is confident of his charges’ ability to see off Malaysia in Hanoi, in the 2018 AFF Championship final.
BY ZULHILMI ZAINAL Follow on Twitter
Vietnam head coach Park Hang-seo admitted that he was a little disappointed with his defenders, when they allowed hosts Malaysia to score from set-pieces to tie their first leg 2018 AFF Championship final match 2-2.
The visitors blitzed Malaysia with two quick-fire goals by Nguyễn Huy Hùng (22′) and Phạm Đức Huy (25′) to put themselves in the driving seat. But Shahrul Saad nodded in Akram Mahinan’s free kick from the left to pull one back in the 36th minute, before Safawi Rasid curled in a 60th minute free kick equaliser from just outside the Vietnam penalty box.
Malaysia vs Vietnam match highlights
Speaking to the press after the match, the South Korean trainer said that although the game went according to plan, he was unhappy with the set-piece goals his charges conceded.
“My players performed well and fought hard, but conceded set-piece goals, which is a little disappointing. They shouldn’t have given away the fouls, and now we have to prepare better to defend against set-pieces, through video analysis.
“But we did not lose, we drew away, and now head back to Hanoi,” said the 59-year old coach.
He also admitted how the packed Bukit Jalil National Stadium and the boisterous home crowd made things harder for the Golden Dragons, which he hopes the Vietnam fans will emulate in the second leg, to be played at the My Dinh Stadium on Saturday.
“Honestly, I was worried about the noise made by the 80,000 fans at the stadium. It evidently affected the players.
“But we have the backing of the Vietnam fans in Hanoi, so we are expecting a good support from them, as well as a good result,” he remarked.
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