Vietnam U20 national team out of the tournament and end of dream to World Cup after losing to Iran U20 national team with a score of 1-3 in the AFC U20 Asian Cup 2023 Group stage, Group B at Istiqlol Staidum, Fergana.
Vietnam entered the decisive match against Iran with many surprises in the starting lineup. Coach Hoang Anh Tuan decided to put both players who scored in the previous two matches, Quoc Viet and Van Truong, on the bench. This is a match that Vietnam only needs to draw to continue.
Vietnam actively retreated into the squad to make room for the opponent. Therefore, during the first half, Cao Van Binh’s goal continuously had to exchange islands with consecutive stops from Iran. Vietnam also had a free kick to hit Khuat Van Khang’s vertical post.
But in the end, Iran was still the team that opened the scoring. Taking advantage of a very good height, representatives from West Asia continuously applied crosses into the penalty area. In such a situation, the captain of Iran, Mohammed Hazbavi, easily headed near the goal to score the opening goal.
In the second half, U20 Vietnam pushed up the offensive kick formation and coach Hoang Anh Tuan brought both Van Truong and Quoc Viet into the field. The efforts of the young players paid off in the 55th minute when Van Khang penetrated the smart penalty area and finished close to defeat the Iranian goalkeeper.
However, when there was an exciting momentum, U20 Vietnam conceded a goal. Iran U20 had a good coordination in the penalty area and striker Saeid Saharkhizan easily finished close to the wall to help the home team lead 2-1. U20 Vietnam’s efforts at the end of the match were not enough to get the equalizer. Even in the last minutes of the match, Iran U20 had one more goal to set the score 1-3.
Losing to Iran with a score of 1-3, U20 Vietnam was officially eliminated from this tournament. The two teams that continue in Group B will be Australia and Iran. This is a very unfortunate result when coach Hoang Anh Tuan and his team won the first two matches in the group stage.
Credit Photo : AFC
