Malaysia coach Tan Cheng Hoe believes his team will improve throughout the group stage after seeing Paulo Josué second-half double secure an opening 2-1 win over Myanmar in Group B of the ASEAN Hyundai Cup™ 2026 in Yangon on Saturday.
The Malaysian captain scored twice in five minutes soon after the interval to cancel out Myat Kaung Khant’s 10th minute opener and secure a winning start for the 2010 champions.
“The result will give the players confidence, and I thought they performed well,” said Tan, who led his nation to the final in 2018.
“We know there are still some weaknesses within the team, and we are gradually building the character required to compete in matches like this.
“Fitness remains a concern because most of the players have only recently returned for pre-season training and are not yet fully prepared. However, as I mentioned before, we will focus on one game at a time.
“I hope that after another one or two matches, we will improve in terms of teamwork, understanding and chemistry. Those elements are very important.
“We have a good mixture of young and experienced players, and they have worked well together. The positive environment and harmony within the team give us confidence that we can progress far in the tournament.”
The home side carried a significant threat on the counterattack and Win Naing Tun should have doubled Myanmar’s lead late in the first half when he hit the woodwork, leaving coach Jørn Andersen frustrated at his team’s failure to complete the win.
“Anyone who watched the match could see that Malaysia were not better than Myanmar today,” said Andersen, who was appointed Myanmar coach in Juune. “Myanmar were the team who attacked, played quickly and created chances.
“Malaysia perhaps created three opportunities and scored twice, while we created eight or nine chances and scored only once. We were the team who created more opportunities, tried to play football and attempted to win the match.
“However, that is football. When you do not convert your chances, it becomes difficult.”
Myanmar travel to the Philippines for their next Group B match on Tuesday while Malaysia host Laos in Kuala Lumpur and Andersen stressed that his team must improve their defending if they are to succeed at the ASEAN Hyundai Cup™ 2026.
“We have spoken about this throughout the week during training,” said the Norwegian. “Inside our own penalty area, particularly from set-pieces and crosses, we have to mark the opposition players properly.
“Whenever we fail to do that, we concede easy goals. That is an area in which we have to improve. I do not know why the players are not marking more effectively.”
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