Philippine Azkals coach Stewart Hall rued the referee’s decision to award Thailand a penalty late in the 2-1 loss that knocked them out of semifinal contention in the AFF Suzuki Cup 2020.

Amani Aguinaldo’s foul on Thithipan Puangchan with less than 15 minutes left in their Group A match at Singapore’s National Stadium allowed Teerasil Dangda to convert a penalty that eventually sealed the win for Thailand.

But Hall, whose team needed at least a draw to stay in contention for a semis berth, was quick to question the decision.

“The penalty was very dubious,” Hall said in the post-match press conference. “Obviously, it’s the deciding factor. I’d like to see it a few times. But my players were not happy about the decision and from where I looked, it was very, very innocuous.”

The Azkals suffered their second loss in three matches in the pandemic-delayed competition for three points, six clear of Thailand and Singapore which later in the day posted a 2-0 win over Timor-Leste.

The Azkals fell behind in the first half after Teerasil smashed a cross from Theerathon Bunmathan in the 26th to make it 1-0 for Thailand.

Teerasil’s first goal also made him the top goalscorer in the history of the AFF Championship, which Hall said could have been avoided.

“First goal, obviously it's our fault,” he said. “We've given the ball away in the corner, we're a bit sloppy and loose on possession. We've given the ball away and they've got the opening goal, so that could have been avoided."

The Philippines did tie it up in the second half when Patrick Reichelt scored his 12th in an Azkals shirt off a set piece, and there were hopes that the two sides would share the spoils.

But it wasn’t the case at the end, and the Azkals have failed to make it to the semifinals in two of the past three editions.