Kaya-Iloilo’s hopes of advancing to the knockout phase of the 2024–25 Shopee Cup dimmed further after suffering a 2-1 defeat against Vietnam’s Cong An Hanoi on Thursday at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.
Coached by two-time ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup champion Alexandré “Mano” Pölking, the 2023 V.League 1 champions established a two-goal lead by halftime.
Lê Văn Đô, a standout from Vietnam’s Under-23 squad that won gold in the 31st Southeast Asian Games, opened the scoring 15 minutes into the match with a brilliant strike inside the box. He doubled the lead in the 28th minute when his shot took an unfortunate deflection off Kaya-Iloilo defender Marco Casambre, leaving the goalkeeper helpless.
“Very, very happy with the three points, but I’m not happy with our second half. If we really want to perform well in this competition, we have to do better than this. Fortunately, it was enough,” said Pölking after the match.
Kaya-Iloilo found a glimmer of hope in the 53rd minute when midfielder Mark Swainston scored, marking the defending Philippines Football League champions’ first goal of the competition. However, that proved to be the team’s only highlight as they failed to find an equalizer.
The loss adds to Kaya-Iloilo’s struggles in Group B, following a 1-0 defeat to Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur City on August 22, 2024, and a crushing 7-0 loss to Thailand’s Buriram United on September 26, 2024. With three consecutive losses, Kaya-Iloilo remains at the bottom of the group, with 0 points and a goal difference of -9.
“Sadly, we didn’t get a point in this match. We have to accept this, but until the end of 90 minutes, the players gave 100%,” said Kaya-Iloilo coach Yu Hoshide.
In contrast, Cong An Hanoi solidified its position at the top of Group B with nine points and a goal difference of +7, putting one foot firmly into the next round.
Both teams will resume their campaigns early next year. Kaya-Iloilo will visit Indonesian club Borneo FC Samarinda on January 23, followed by a home match against Singapore’s Lion City Sailors on February 6. Meanwhile, Cong An Hanoi will face Kuala Lumpur City away and conclude its group-stage journey against Borneo at the Hàng Đẫy Stadium.
