Malaysia fail to hit AFF U-23 semi-final target

The Star

21-07-2025

Coming through: Malaysia's Mohd Harry Danish Mohd Haizon (right) vying for the ball with Philippines' goalkeeper Nicholas Guimaraes during their AFF Under-23 Championship match at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta. — AP
PETALING JAYA: Harimau Muda failed to advance to the semi-final of the AFF Under-23 Championship after they were held 0-0 by host nation Indonesia in their final Group A match at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium on Monday (July 21).
They finished third in the group with four points, while Indonesia topped the group with seven.
The Philippines were second with six points but would have to wait and see if they are the best runners-up out of the three groups in the competition.
Indonesia dominated the first half with 70% but in terms of chances, they had six, while Malaysia had four good chances despite having less possession.
The game was indeed frenetic as both sides were aggressive, which led to match referee Koji Takasaki brandishing four yellow cards, two for each team.
The highlight of the game was Robi Darwis' throw-ins, in which the Indonesian made several dangerous long throws that made the Malaysian players be on their toes.
Malaysia's first strong chance came in the 52nd minute when winger Aliff Izwan Yuslan unleashed a powerful free kick from 30 metres, but his stinging effort was palmed away superbly by Indonesian goalkeeper Cahya Supriadi.
Five minutes later, Indonesia thought they had the lead when wingback Achmad Maulana Syarif made a low-drilled cross from the right, which was tapped by striker Jens Raven, but Malaysian goalkeeper Zulhilmi Sharani was able to save his attempt.