–fotoBERNAMA (2017) HAK CIPTA TERPELIHARA
# Substitute Rabih Ataya destroys Malaysia with a brace
# Malaysia fail to hold on to their first-half lead
Malaysia began their Asian Cup Group B campaign on the wrong foot with 2-1 defeat to Lebanon at Johor Bahru’s Larkin Stadium on Tuesday night – under new Portuguese coach Eduardo Vingada.
It was Malaysia’s first match in the group while Lebanon registered their second win in as many matches – having beaten Hong Kong 2-0 in their first match.
In another match in the same group at the Hong Kong Stadium the homesters drew 1-1 with North Korea.
Malaysia opened accounts on 43 minutes with Johor Darul Takzim player Mahali Jasuli taking advantage of Lebanon keeper Mehdi Khalil’s fumble from an earlier attempt by Hazwan Bakri for a 1-0 lead at half-time.
However, Lebanon never gave up and were firing on all cylinders after the break with substitute Rabih Ataya making all the difference in his team’s onslaught. Rabih was a threat each time he was on the ball but Malaysia goalkeeper stood his ground until the 80th minute.
Amri Yahyah was hauled up for a rough tackle and gave away a freekick which turned out to be disastrous for Malaysia. Rabih unleashed a curling left footer which sailed into the right corner with Khairul well beaten.
Still a draw looked imminent as the seconds ticked away to four minutes of added time until Rabih plundered the winner from an assist by skipper Hassan Matouk – breaking the hearts of the nearly 7,000 home supporters.
Though beaten Malaysia gave strong signals that a Malaysian football revival is on the cards with Vingada promising “things can only get better” from now.
It was Vingada’s first match and the Portuguese sees depth in the game in Malaysia but needs time to make the nation a powerhouse in this region for a start. – BY RIZAL ABDULLAH
