Football
Malaysia routs Under-22 Azkals, 7-0
The Philippine national Under-22 football team suffered another beatdown, yielding a 7-0 loss to Malaysia Monday in the Asian Football Confederation U-22 Asian Cup qualifiers at the Aung San Stadium in Yangon, Myanmar.
Midfielder Rozaimi Abdul Rahman led the Malaysian onslaught againt the Philippines, exploding for four goals to lead the Harimau Muda to their first victory.
Malaysia drew blood early, as Rahman sank his first goal in the second minute.
The dam broke loose before the end of the half, as Malaysia found the back of the net twice in a span of two minutes courtesy of midfielder Mohamad Fandi Bin Othman at the 32nd and Rahman’s second goal at the 35th. Midfielder Wan Zaharulnizam Bin Zakaria slotted another goal at the 40th minute to give Malaysia a comfortable 4-0 cushion at halftime.
Rahman bagged a hat trick at the 69th minute on a penalty kick, then blasted again at the 74th minute before Saarvindran Devandrn sank one at the 91st minute to complete their dominance over the Philippine side.
The defeat dropped the U-22 Azkals even further down the bottom of the standings with two losses and a minus-11 goal differential. The Philippines also lost to Myanmar, 5-1, in the tournament opener Saturday.
The U-22 will rest on Tuesday and Wednesday before battling Vietnam on Thursday.
The Philippines needs to finish in the top two of the standings, or be the best third-placer of the tournament, to qualify for the inaugural U-22 Asian Cup in 2013.
