Harimau Malaya lose 2-0 to China in controversial match
KUALA LUMPUR: China handed 10-man Malaysia a 2-0 defeat in their international friendly, but the result was overshadowed by two rejected penalty appeals, a late goal ruled out following a VAR review and Fergus Tierney's dismissal.
Malaysia suffered a 2-0 loss to China in an international friendly match, despite being ahead for most of the game. The team, ranked 96th in the world, dominated early on with two goals within the first 20 minutes. However, their victory was marred by controversy. Referee Ko Hyung Jin missed two penalty appeals, denying Dion Cools and Ramadhan Saifullah.
Malaysia believed they had equalized in the 77th minute when Tierney scored, but his goal was disallowed after VAR review due to a foul by Safwan Mazlan. The team's celebration was short-lived as Tierney received a red card in the 90th minute for retaliating to a foul by Alex Yang. This defeat came after a tough squad management decision by coach Tan Cheng Hoe, who had to make several substitutions due to injuries and limited availability.
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