Thailand Beats Malaysia 2-0 in Hung Dae Cup Qualifier
Thailand defeated Malaysia 2-0 in a 2026 AFC Hung Dae Cup qualifier at Rajamangala Stadium, taking the lead in Group B without conceding a goal.
Thailand's national team faced Malaysia in their second Group B match of the 2026 AFC Hung Dae Cup at Rajamangala Stadium on August 1st. Thailand came into the match having defeated Laos 5-0 in their opening game, while Malaysia had already played two matches—a 2-1 win over Myanmar and a 4-0 demolition of Laos for six points. Thailand ultimately won 2-0 to take the group lead.
After the match, coach Anthony Hudson said: "I must say we are proud of all our players who performed excellently and achieved our goal of winning without conceding. Towards the end of the game, we saw four or five players with cramps, so we need to accelerate fitness recovery."
Hudson also defended his choice of Yotstkorn Burapaa to take penalties despite having never scored from them in club football. "We had training before the match and Yotstkorn performed better than others, so we selected him," Hudson explained.
On low attendance, Hudson said: "We need to improve our playing standard to attract more fans to the stadium. However, we thank the fans who came to support us—it gave the coaching staff and players great encouragement."
Hudson praised Malaysia's performance: "Malaysia played well with several players who gave us concern, but we must credit our players for handling their tactical plan effectively."
Sarach Yooyian, Thailand's midfielder and man of the match, said: "We played as a team today. My personal confidence was already high, and executing the coach's plan boosted it further. I quite admired Malaysia's Secchio Aguero's style, with his excellent ball-winning ability. In our next home match, we hope more fans will come to watch another exciting game."
Malaysia coach Tan Cheng Ho expressed disappointment, noting that while his team played well, they could not overcome the better side and hoped the experience would benefit them going forward.
Thailand's next match will be an away fixture against the Philippines at New Clark City Stadium in Capas on August 20th at 8:00 p.m.