More than a week ago, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) issued a decision to defeat the Malaysian national team in 2 matches against Vietnam and Nepal in the Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers for using naturalized players against regulations.
This means that the Malaysian team is deducted 6 points, only 9 points left and falls to 2nd place in the rankings. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese team is added 3 points, rising to the top with 15 points.
In the context that the qualifying round only has 1 match left, the situation of Group F has been decided. Coach Kim Sang-sik's team officially won a ticket to the Asian finals 1 match early, while the Malaysian team stopped in the qualifiers.
Therefore, the upcoming match between Vietnam and Malaysia is no longer decisive. However, from another perspective, this is an opportunity for the two teams to affirm their position in Southeast Asia.
Before the important match against Malaysia, the Vietnamese team had a friendly match against Bangladesh. Through this, coach Kim Sang-sik tested the squad, tactics and built a playing style based on the new framework.
This is considered a necessary preparation for the "Golden Star Warriors" before the rematch against Malaysia, aiming for a positive result to close the Asian Cup qualifiers with a goal of winning all matches.
The match between Vietnam and Malaysia takes place at 7:00 PM on March 31st at Thien Truong Stadium.
