Thailand hand Vietnam heavy defeat
Hanoi: Turmoil in the country's football governing body did little to dampen the spirits of the Thai national team as they carved out an impressive 3-0 win over Vietnam to improve their chances of sailing through their World Cup qualifying campaign.
Goals by Kroekrit Taweekarn and Theerathon Bunmathan sandwiched an own-goal by the home team and gave Kiatisak Senamuang's men a comfortable win.
The victory bolstered the Thais' position at the top of the Asian World Cup qualifying Group F standings.
They now have 10 points from four games and enjoy a five-point advantage over second-placed Iraq, who have a match in hand.
Vietnam stayed put in third place with four points from as many matches. Taiwan, the other team in the group, are still looking for their first point.
The heavy loss dashed Vietnamese hopes of staking a claim for first place in the group and left them with only a hypothetical chance of making it to the final stage of Asia's final qualifying round for the 2018 World Cup.