Thanh Hoa: Vietnam’s Đông Á Thanh Hóa FC registered the first win of the inaugural ASEAN Club Championship Shopee Cup™ when they fought back from behind to defeat Shan United FC of Myanmar 3-1 in the opening fixture of Group A on Wednesday.
Moussa Bakayoko wrote his name into the history books as the Shopee Cup’s first-ever goal scorer when he pulled Myo Hlaing Win’s Shan ahead at Thanh Hoa Province Stadium in the fifth minute – an advantage they preserved till the hour mark.
It was half-time substitute Rimario Gordon who helped the Vietnamese National Cup winners find a way back into the tournament opener with an equaliser before goals from Yago Ramos and Luiz Antonio secured the three points for the hosts.
Shan, who made it to the Shopee Cup group stage after defeating Kasuka FC of Brunei Darussalam in the Qualifying Round Play-offs, stunned the home side when they went ahead through Bakayoko only five minutes after kick-off.
Myo Ko Tun and Thanh Hóa captain Gustavo scrapped for possession outside the box but it was the Shan midfielder who came out on top and managed to slip in a through pass for Bakayoko, who got in behind the defence and slotted past goalkeeper Trinh Xuan Hoang to make it 1-0.
Velizar Popov’s players had to wait until the 15th minute to create their first chance when A Mit’s ball into the box was met with a first-time effort from Le Van Thang, with Shan custodian Kyaw Zin Phyo denying the Lam Son Warriors an equaliser.
Van Thang again found space inside the box in the 23rd minute, but this time, squared the ball to the centre where an unmarked Antonio ballooned his shot over the Shan goal.
The Myanmar National League champions were forced onto their backfoot as the match progressed, but Bakayoko almost found his second of the evening in the 36th minute when the Cameroonian forward’s shot from distance was pushed behind for a corner by Xuan Hoang.
Van Thang continued to be influential for Thanh Hóa and thought he earned a penalty for the hosts after drawing a foul from Zwe Khant Min inside the box in the 40th minute, but the decision was overturned after a VAR review and the score stayed the same at the halfway stage.
Thanh Hoa brought on Rimario Gordon to replace the injured Van Thang at the half-time break and the Jamaican striker almost made an instant impact as he chested down a cross for his teammate Ngoc Tan Doan whose shot from close range was fisted onto the crossbar by Kyaw Zin Phyo.
The substitution paid dividends at the hour mark when an unmarked Rimario got in front of the Shan goalkeeper to head home a cross from Hoang Thai Binh – restoring the parity and setting up an exciting conclusion to the group stage opener.
Buoyed by the home support, the Vietnamese then grabbed the lead through Ramos who climbed the highest to meet a corner from Antonio with his head and scored his first goal for the club in the 72nd minute.
But the pick of the goals came in the 87th minute when Antonio was afforded space outside the box and the Brazilian blasted a shot from 25 yards out which pierced the top corner to make it 3-1 and secure a winning start for Thanh Hóa in the Shopee Cup.
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