Mongolia Drops Tsunami Cup Opener, 0-3
Update: It has been revealed that each nation was fielding its under-23 team following Olympic football regulations.
Today Mongolia kicked off its attempt to win the 2017 Tsunami Cup with a disappointing 0-3 defeat to Kyrgyzstan in a rain-soaked Harapan Bangsa Stadium. Although the team is not yet mathematically eliminated from earning the championship, the defeat today has made the possibility very unlikely.
Number 115-ranked Kyrgyzstan dominated for most of the match. The team took an early lead in the 15th minute through a strike from senior team player Anton Zemlianukhin and never looked back. Kadybrek Saarbekov tallied the second goal of the night in the 56th minute off of a rebound from an attempt by Anton Zemlianukhin. Kyrgyzstan's all-time leading senior scorer Zemlianukhin bagged his second and finished the scoring with a 68th-minute strike of his own from a free kick that got past Mongolian Keeper Mönkh-Erdene Enkhtaivan.
Mongolia's best opportunity to score came off of a free kick from a dangerous position by Munkh-Erdene Tuguldur in the 69th minute. However, the opportunity ultimately materialized into nothing.
Ultimately, the result was a better reflection upon Mongolia than the team's actual play as Kyrgyzstan dominated the match and completely stifled the Mongolian attack.
Mongolia will next take on hosts Indonesia on 4 December in the later match of the day while Kyrgyzstan faces Brunei in the earlier match.