DOHA: A stoppage-time goal broke the hearts of Harimau Malaya as Bahrain raced away to a 1-0 victory in Saturday's Asian Cup Group E match at Jassim bin Hamad Stadium here.
Ali Madan's shot sailed through a sea of legs before beating Malaysian goalkeeper Ahmad Syihan Hazmi in the fifth minute of stoppage time.
However, the world No. 130 should not be disheartened as they fought bravely and gave the No. 86 Bahrain anxious moments, especially in the first half."
With their second defeat of the tournament, Malaysia are no longer in contention for a spot in the last 16 unless they beat South Korea by a huge margin.
Kim Pan Gon's side were composed ans well-structured, especially in defence, making it very difficult for Bahrain.
It was surely a better performance than their poor showing in the 4-0 defeat to Jordan on Monday.
Arif Aiman Hanapi should have scored in the 15th minute, but his attempt was blocked by Bahrain goalkeeper Ebrahim Lutfalla.
Malaysia were better in the opening 30 minutes but faded away after that.
The team could not maintain the high tempo as Bahrain slowly stamped their mark and dominated the match in the second half.
"Devastating, we worked so hard. It is nobody's fault.
"A little bit frustrating. Disappointing.
"A lot of positives to take from the game," said captain Matthew Davies.