Undefeated for over a decade against Malaysia, Vietnam still must be cautious in the ASEAN Cup 2026 semifinals.

The Vietnamese national team is heading into a highly anticipated rematch against Malaysia in the ASEAN Cup 2026 semifinals.

Although they have a dominant head-to-head record over the years, history still leaves unpleasant memories for the "Golden Star Warriors" whenever they face this opponent in the semifinals.

According to statistics, Vietnam has faced Malaysia 25 times in history and holds a clear advantage with 17 wins, 3 draws, and only 5 losses. Looking specifically at recent years, Vietnam's dominance is even more evident, winning 9 of the last 10 encounters against the Malaysians.

Despite overwhelming Malaysia in head-to-head record, notably in both meetings with the Malaysians in the ASEAN Cup semifinals, Vietnam ended up losing the tie.

Vietnam's most notable defeat to Malaysia occurred in the first leg of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers last year, when the red-clad team lost 0-4 away. However, later FIFA determined that Malaysia had used invalid naturalization documents for 7 players. The match result was adjusted to a 3-0 victory for Vietnam.

In the rematch this March, without the services of the aforementioned group of players, Malaysia could not cause an upset. Coach Kim Sang Sik's team secured a convincing 3-1 victory, further asserting their regional dominance against the familiar rival.

Speaking of memorable encounters between the two teams, one cannot ignore the 2018 AFF Cup, where Vietnam and Malaysia met in the final. Under coach Park Hang Seo, Vietnam overcame their opponent with a 3-2 aggregate over two legs to claim the Southeast Asian championship. At that time, Malaysia was led by coach Tan Cheng Hoe, who is once again in charge of the national team.

However, alongside the impressive victories, history also records a statistic that makes Vietnamese fans wary. In both previous meetings with Malaysia in the AFF Cup semifinals, Vietnam was the team that had to stop.

In the 2010 AFF Cup, as defending champions, Vietnam surprisingly lost 0-2 away in the first leg before drawing 0-0 at home, thus being eliminated with a 0-2 aggregate. Four years later, the unfortunate scenario repeated. Vietnam won 2-1 away in the first leg of the 2014 AFF Cup semifinal, but then lost 2-4 at My Dinh Stadium in the second leg and watched Malaysia advance to the final.

Notably, in all five previous appearances in the AFF Cup/ASEAN Cup finals (1998, 2008, 2018, 2022, and 2024), Vietnam did not face Malaysia in the semifinals. This makes the upcoming encounter even more significant and draws fans' attention.

At present, Malaysian football is entering a rebuilding phase after personnel changes. The team is temporarily led by veteran coach Tan Cheng Hoe after Peter Cklamovski left the helm. Although they still have some naturalized players like Mohamadou Sumareh, Paulo Josue, Aguero, Endrick, and Wan Kuzain, Malaysia's squad is considered not as strong as before.

Coach Tan Cheng Hoe himself admitted that Vietnam is rated higher. The manager considers Malaysia the underdog and shows great respect for the opponent ahead of the upcoming match.

According to the schedule, the first leg of the ASEAN Cup 2026 semifinal between Malaysia and Vietnam will take place on August 16 at Malaysia's home ground. Three days later, Coach Kim Sang Sik's team will return to My Dinh Stadium to host the opponent in the second leg.