The Laos football team was crushed 6-0 by Vietnam in its first AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup match in Vientiane yesterday.
The Vietnamese, winners of the 2008 and 2018 championships, swept over the hosts in the first Group B match of this year’s Southeast Asian competition.
After a foul and yellow card by Lao striker Billy Ketkeophomphone early in the game, Vietnamese Nguyen Tien Linh took the visitors into the lead in the 15th minute.
Do Hung Dung scored two minutes before the break, bringing the score to 2-0 by halftime.
As the second half began, Lao defenders were unable to prevent Vietnamese strikers from scoring. The third and fourth goals came in the 56th and 58th minutes.
But Vietnamese players did not let up, and were able to add two more goals at the end of the match.
Lao football fans were left disappointed, commenting that the Lao team remains far behind its Vietnamese rivals in terms of skill and experience.
Laos will take on Malaysia on 24 December, following the country’s 1-0 defeat of Myanmar yesterday.
Meanwhile, Vietnam will play three days later, also against the Malaysians in Group B.
