Vietnam will face Thailand in the ASEAN Hyundai Cup™ 2026 final, with substitute Nguyễn Xuân Son scoring twice to earn his side a 2-0 victory over Malaysia in the second leg semi-final in Hanoi on Wednesday that secured a 4-0 aggregate win for the defending champions.
Xuân Son netted in the 62nd minute to break Malaysia’s resistance before hitting the second a minute from time to close out the victory for Kim Sang-sik’s side, who had won 2-0 in the first leg in Kuala Lumpur and will next face the Thais in a re-run of the 2024 final.
A sell-out crowd packed into the Mỹ Đình Stadium and Vietnam flew out of the blocks with Nguyễn Đình Bắc released down the right seconds after kick-off to deliver a cross towards the far post that Phan Tuấn Tài flashed across the face of goal.
Đình Bắc shot wide soon after and Đoàn Văn Hậu’s 10th-minute header was blocked on the line by Malaysia goalkeeper Azri Ghani as the home side sought as early as possible to add to their two-goal advantage.
Azri continued to frustrate the Vietnamese, pulling off a flying save to deny Đình Bắc as the Vietnam striker looked destined to find the top corner from distance at the halfway point in the opening period.
Văn Hậu’s effort was rebuffed by another Azri save as Vietnam continued to press while Nguyễn Quang Hải’s attempt from distance was also palmed to safety as the irritation grew for Kim’s side.
Another Vietnamese attack a minute from the interval should have yielded the opener, Quang Hải sliding the ball into the path of Đỗ Hoàng Hên but he somehow clipped his left-foot shot on the run wide of Azri’s right post.
The onslaught threatened to continue immediately after the interval with Đình Bắc’s header tipped over the bar by Azri and as the half wore on, the Malaysians finally came out of their shell.
Patrik Lê Giang needed to make a reaction save from G. Pavithran while Paulo Josué’s follow-up was deflected over the crossbar by the Vietnamese defence.
Kim introduced Xuân Son in an effort to find a way past the stubborn Malaysian goalkeeper and, in the 62ndminute, that move paid off to the immense delight of the home crowd.
The Brazil-born striker had seen Azri save a close-range header seconds after his 59th minute introduction, but three minutes later he pounced on the ball after Trương Tiến Anh’s initial shot had been blocked by the defence.
Azri was on hand again to prevent Xuân Son from registering his second with a sprawling save to his right but there was little the Malaysians could do about Xuân Son’s second when he powered down the left and cut inside to beat the goalkeeper once again for his fifth goal of the tournament, tying Đình Bắc as the joint leading goalscorer with the final to play.
Hyundai Player of the Match - Nguyễn Xuân Son (#12), Vietnam
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