The U16 team hopes to "settle the score" with the Vietnam U19 team.
The impressive results of the Vietnam U19 team at the Southeast Asian U19 Championship have breathed new life into Vietnamese football. And fans are hoping the U16 team will do the same in the Asian U16 Championship qualifiers taking place in Malaysia.
Tonight (8 PM), the U16 team will play their opening match in Group J of the 2014 AFC U16 Championship. Vietnam's opponent will be Indonesia's U16 team.
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| Vietnam U16 team (Source: VFF) |
In this group, besides U16 Indonesia, our remaining opponents will be U16 Japan and U16 Philippines.
According to experts, the Japanese U16 team is almost certain to win first place; therefore, the Vietnamese U16 team will have to strive for second place against two other regional rivals. According to the format, only the group winners qualify directly for the finals, while the second-placed teams must compete in a play-off.
Just a few days ago, the Vietnam U19 team suffered a heartbreaking defeat to Indonesia U19 in the Southeast Asian U19 Championship final, a match where the referees were lenient towards the host team's rough play. Therefore, this is an opportunity for Vietnamese football to settle the score.
Before departing for Kuala Lumpur, coach Dinh Van Dung and his team had made very thorough preparations. Coach Dung commented: "The players have made a lot of progress; they have grasped the initial skill and tactical exercises well. However, due to their age and growth, they also tend to forget things quickly. This requires persistent guidance from the coaching staff."
Assessing their opponent, the Indonesian U19 team, coach Dinh Van Dung expressed caution: “We have seen Indonesia play in the Southeast Asian U16 tournament, so we can see that they are a very strong opponent. I think that if the referee hadn't been biased towards Malaysia, Indonesia would have been the champion, not Malaysia. Indonesia has played on equal footing with Australia. They have good physique and stamina. Their ability to play football and implement their style of play is very systematic.”
At the U16 level, Vietnamese football has had some memorable experiences at continental tournaments. In 2000, at the U16 Asian Championship finals held in Da Nang, the generation of players including Van Quyen, Nhu Thuat, and Lam Tan delighted fans by reaching the semi-finals after a historic 3-2 victory against China.
According to (Vietnam+) - DT
