Mohd Sali stars for Malaysia in cup

Malaysia have taken a stranglehold on the ASEAN Football Federation Cup final with a 3-0 home victory over Indonesia in Sunday’s first leg.

Once again the hero for Malaysia was Selangor striker Mohd Safee Mohd Sali, whose two goals were the difference in their semi-final triumph over Vietnam, and his brace gave Malaysia a considerable buffer heading into Wednesday’s second leg.

After a tense first half, the match came alive on the hour mark when Mohd Sali put the hosts in front, much to the delight of the crowd at the National Stadium, Bukit Jalil.

Mohamed Ashaari Shamsuddin doubled their advantage eight minutes later before Mohd Sali scored his second 17 minutes from the end.

Indonesia, who overcame the Philippines 2-0 on aggregate in their semi-final, face an uphill battle in the second leg but they will have the home ground advantage, with the fixture scheduled for the Stadion Utama Gelora Bung Karno in Jakarta.