Bangladesh begin ASEAN Cup with 3-0 defeat 

Bangladesh's FIFA ASEAN Cup campaign began on a disappointing note as Malaysia secured a comfortable 3-0 victory in Jakarta on Friday, leaving three expatriate players with an unhappy international debut.

Farhan Ali Wahid, Shuki Itofusa and Zidan Yousuf all made their first appearances for Bangladesh, but their long-awaited debuts were overshadowed by a dominant Malaysian display at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium.

The 45-place gap between the sides in the FIFA rankings was reflected on the pitch, with Malaysia controlling much of the contest and repeatedly troubling Bangladesh's defence with pace and movement from both flanks.

Arif Aiman gave Malaysia the lead in the 18th minute, collecting a long pass from Lirna Nuar before sliding a low shot through goalkeeper Mehedi Hasan Srabon's legs.

The forward doubled the advantage nine minutes before half-time after capitalising on a defensive error by Shakil Ahad Tapu, calmly finishing past Srabon for his second of the night.

Bangladesh struggled to establish any rhythm, with their best first-half opportunity coming in the 33rd minute when Rakib Hossain's attempted back-heel from Saad Uddin's cross drifted wide.

Malaysia extended their lead seven minutes after the restart when Bergson curled a fine right-footed effort beyond Srabon to make it 3-0.

Thomas Dooley introduced Itofusa, Shahriar Emon, Sheikh Morsalin and Zidan as Bangladesh sought a way back, but Malaysia remained in control.

Hamza Choudhury came closest to reducing the deficit in the 76th minute, twice seeing his effort denied by the Malaysian goalkeeper and defence.

Bangladesh will now look to regroup before facing hosts Indonesia in their next Group A match on Monday.