Follow the beat of referee, not linesman - Kim Swee

Cambodia would not have scored the simple two goals if Harimau Malaysia had been more vigilant in controlling the movements of their opponents, said chief coach Datuk Ong Kim Swee.

He said the two goals could have been avoided had Malaysia played according to the decisions of the referee instead of the linesman.

The team beat Cambodia in a narrow 3-2 win in the Group B opening match of the 2016 Asean Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup at the Thuwunna Stadium here Sunday.

"It certainly serves as a lesson to our players to play by whistles and not by the flag," he told a press conference after the match.

Malaysian players protested the decision by referee Abdul Baqi Yaqoob Abdullah, from Oman, who allowed the controversial goal by Cambodian striker Chan Vathanaka in the sixth minute despite the linesman having already raised the flag, as Vathanaka was said to be in offside position prior to scoring.

Meanwhile, Kim Swee said the announcement on who would be his first eleven to play against Vietnam on Wednesday would be made after another opening match of Group B between Myanmar and Vietnam last night.

Cambodia head coach Lee Tae Hoon, on the other hand, was dissatisfied with the performance of his team despite taking lead twice in the match.

The South Korean also noted that the defeat served as a lesson for the players to improve on their performance before taking on Myanmar in the second group match on Wednesday.

"Some of our players are still struggling playing under the hot weather...My players did show the winning mentality by taking the lead twice in the match.

"Frankly speaking, I expect we can get at least a 2-1 win in the match, but our players lost focus halfway in the second half which led to the defeat," he said. --Bernama