Cong An Hanoi, a club from Vietnam booked their place in the final after beating PSM Makassar, a club from Indonesia scoring 2-0 in the Shopee Cup 2024/25 Semi-Final second leg at Hang Day Stadium, Hanoi.
Trailing 1-0 from the first leg in Parepare, Công An showed their class and composure in front of a passionate home crowd, scoring through Hugo Gomes and Bui Hoang Viet Anh to secure a 2-1 aggregate victory and keep their dream of continental glory alive.
After a frustrating opening leg where Alan Grafite missed a penalty, the hosts came out firing from the first whistle. Grafite nearly gave his side the perfect start with a fierce shot inside five minutes, only for PSM goalkeeper Reza Arya to pull off a strong save.
The pressure continued to mount. Defender Yuran Fernandes, whose header had given PSM the edge in the first leg, was forced to make a desperate block to deny Grafite again after a smart setup by Le Van Do and Jason Pendant.
Nguyen Quang Hai, one of Vietnam’s brightest stars, was at the heart of Công An’s relentless attack. In the 19th minute, his powerful shot was parried by Reza, and Vitao squandered the rebound, firing straight at the keeper.
Công An’s dominance was total in the first half, recording 14 shots to PSM’s zero, with the visitors only registering a speculative effort by Daisuke Sakai in the 44th minute that deflected wide.
The breakthrough came just three minutes after the restart. A Quang Hai corner was expertly flicked on by Phan Van Duc, finding Hugo Gomes at the far post who made no mistake, slamming the ball home to level the tie at 1-1 on aggregate.
The winner wasn’t far behind. In the 60th minute, Pendant’s clever delivery following another corner fell to Viet Anh, who coolly slotted the ball past Reza with his left foot, sending the Hang Day crowd into raptures.
Filip Nguyen made his only major save in the 71st minute, denying Abdul Rahman’s bullet header to keep Công An’s lead intact. PSM’s attacking efforts faded late on, with Bernardo Tavares’ side unable to break down a resolute Vietnamese defense.
It was a masterclass in control, intensity, and mental resilience from Alexandre Polking’s men, who now advance to the Shopee Cup final, where they will face the winner of the all-Thai clash between Buriram United and BG Pathum United.
Credit Photo : PSM Makassar
