KUALA LUMPUR: Harimau Malaya roared into the AFF Cup semi-finals with a resounding a 4-1 win over arch-rivals Singapore at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil today.
Striker Darren Lok started the ball rolling for Malaysia with a headed goal in the 35th minute before midfielder Stuart Wilkin bagged a brace (50th and 55th) and Sergio Aguero (88th) added to the mauling of the Lions.
Faris Ramli scored a consolation goal for Singapore in the 85th minute.
The win moved Harimau Malaya up to second in Group B with nine points behind Vietnam (10 points) from four matches.
Kim Pan Gon's team rose magnificently to the challenge in this do-or-die mission amid much pressure as Singapore had started the match needing only a draw to advance while Malaysia must win. And the statistics were against Harimau who had been unable to tame the Lions in their last three encounters.
Buoyed by the roar of 65,147 fans at the stadium, Harimau went for the Lions' jugular from the first whistle.
Malaysia's strikeforce of Darren, skipper Safawi Rasid and Faisal Halim pounded the Singapore defence but were thwarted by Singapore custodian Hassan Sunny.
But the Lions' defence finally cracked with Darren glancing in Safawi's cross 10 minutes before half-time.
Five minutes after the restart, English-born midfielder Wilkin fired a long range grounder past Hassan. And in another five minutes, Wilkin bagged his second goal of the evening with a shot from inside the box.
With the game beyond Singapore's reach, Pan Gon took out Safawi and Darren for fresh legs in Lee Tuck and Sergio Aguero in the 60th minute. He also brought in Haqimi Azim for Faizal and Fazly Mazlan for defender Dominic Tan in the 68th minute, and 10 minutes later David Rowley replaced Shahrul Nazeem Zulpakar.
The changes saw Malaysia' hold on the game waver a bit, and leading to Faris reducing the deficit with a goal in the 85th minute.
However, three minutes later Aguero restored Malaysia's three-goal cushion by scoring from close range off a Tuck's pass.
Pan Gon said: "This is one of the team's best performances. We can see the players' determination, the team spirit and team work.
"This win brought happiness to the Malaysian fans," said the South Korean coach at the post-match press conference.
"I thank the supporters for coming to the stadium, they gave us a big boost."
Malaysia will play Thailand in the semi-final first leg at the National Stadium on Jan 7, and the return leg at the Thammasat Stadium in Bangkok on Jan 10.