2010 AFF SUZUKI CUP~Malaysia delirious as Saffee plays hero!!!

Thumped 5-1 by Indonesia in their opening fixture of this year's AFF Suzuki Cup, Malaysia were written off by all and sundry.

K Rajagopal's charges looked limp in attack, shoddy in defence and were not even expected to qualify from a group based in Jakarta that also featured regional powerhouses Thailand and much-improved Laos.

Now, they stand 90 minutes away from an unexpected spot in the final.

Last night, Malaysia beat defending champions Vietnam 2-0 in the first of a two-leg semi-final at Kuala Lumpur's Bukit Jalil Stadium.

Safee Sali was the hero of the night, grabbing both goals in a match that saw Vietnam's goalkeeper Bui Tan Truong turn villain.

Safee's first goal came in the 61st minute, a glancing header that slipped comically through Bui's hands, much to the delight of the thousands of passionate Malaysian fans on the terraces.

It turned from bad to worse for the 24-year-old Vietnamese.

In the 79th minute, Bui could only parry a weak Safiq Rahim shot straight into the path of Malaysia's No 10 and Safee coolly slotted home to send the crowd wild.

The brace was Safee's first goals of the tournament.

The second leg of the last four clash will be held at Hanoi's My Dinh Stadium on Saturday and Vietnam coach Henrique Calisto of Portugal will have his work cut out to overturn the two-goal deficit.

Tonight, the Philippines take on tournament favourites Indonesia at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta in the first leg of the second semi-final.