Regional "news" about Vietnam's victory over the Philippines

"Vietnam control semi-final" was the headline chosen by AFP news agency for its article about Vietnam's 2-1 victory. Meanwhile, Reuters news agency had an article with the title "Philippines lose to Vietnam - Coach Sven-Goran Eriksson's first defeat."

Philippine newspaper reported on the first leg of the semi-final against the Vietnamese team.

Philstar described the Philippines' defeat as "a humiliating defeat to Vietnam". The visitors pushed the 'Azkals' to the brink after winning 2-1 in the first leg of the AFF Cup 2018 semi-final.

"The Golden Dragons scored two early goals in each half to cancel out Patrick Reichelt's crucial strike, giving them a huge advantage heading into the return leg four days later at home in Vietnam," wrote Olmin Leyba.

The Manila Bulletin admitted that the Philippines team clearly had more possession of the ball than their opponents (55% and 45%) but the Vietnamese defense played much better.

This page reported the match: "The Philippines team accepted defeat against the away team. Nguyen Anh Duc and Phan Van Duc took advantage of the home team's mistakes to bring an important advantage to Vietnam before the second leg."

Vietnam national football team played a good match in the Philippines. Photo: AFF

Bombo Radyo Philippines even headlined: "Vietnam team humiliates 'Azkals' in first leg of semi-final"AFF Cup2018". Even when the Filipino players redoubled their efforts in the second half to find an equalizer, they still could not penetrate the opponent's defense.

Rappler newspaper mentioned Nguyen Cong Phuong's missed opportunity in the 81st minute: "Vietnamese Messi showed a big threat when he almost could have widened the gap on the scoreboard."

This page quoted Patrick Reichelt, the player who scored the only goal for the home team in this semi-final match: "It's disappointing. The Philippines has reached the semi-finals many times, I don't want to stop here anymore. I think the team was well prepared but the fighting spirit disappeared somewhere."

Philippine newspaper reports on the first leg of the semi-final against the Vietnamese team. Photo: Thuan Thang

Filipino Football explained that one of the reasons for the Philippines team's defeat was the absence of star player Daisuke Sato. The Philippine football analysis site also commented that this match was quite tense as the home team had many scoring opportunities, while the Vietnamese team's defense was not as good as in previous matches.

ESPN covers the game.

ESPN focused on the head coach of the Philippines team: "Eriksson suffered his first defeat since taking charge of the 'Azkals'. Previously, the former England captain won 2 and drew 2 in his first 4 matches in charge."

This international sports site also assessed that with the away goals rule, the Vietnamese team has a huge advantage to enter the AFF Cup final for the third time in history.

Manila Bulletin commented: "The second leg of the semi-final will take place at My Dinh Stadium, the same place where the 'Azkals' won 2-0 in the AFF Cup group stage 8 years ago."

"Coincidentally, coach Eriksson's current 'Azkals' also need a similar result if they want to win a ticket to the final against defending champions Thailand or Malaysia in mid-December," the writer shared.

Phan Van Duc: From the white snow of Changzhou to the fiery My Dinh

(Baonghean.vn) - Not a genius striker like Anh Duc, not a classy free kicker like Quang Hai, nor a prodigy like Cong Phuong or Van Quyen, but Phan Van Duc possesses the rare qualities of a great player. With his own ability and desire, Phan Van Duc has conquered even the most demanding audiences.