Vietnam National Team: Regrettable, blameworthy and proud

At Zayed Stadium, both Vietnam and Iraq created the most worth-watching match since the beginning of the Asian Cup in terms of intensity, tactical impact, many goals and drama until the last minute.

Proud

In the press conference after the match with Vietnam, coach Srecko Katanec of the Iraqi team showed his respect for his opponent: "I expected a difficult match, but I didn't expect it to be so fierce. In the press conference before the match, I said that Iraq respects Vietnam very much because they have players with good technical qualities and a strong fighting spirit."

Hong Duy made a mistake to let Ali Adnan shine. Photo: AFC

"In Iraq, many people thought that Vietnam was an easy opponent and expected a victory with a difference of 4 to 5 goals. But I never thought like that. And after what happened, I respect them even more. Throughout the whole match, they ran, fought, and organized attacks tirelessly."

Starting with a 3-5-2 formation, with the intention of strengthening the midfield, stopping the "explosive" Quang Hai and taking advantage of the scoring ability of Mohanad Ali (10), the 19-year-old striker. In addition, coach Srecko Katanec also has striker Ahmed Yasin Ghani (9) who scored 3 goals in 4 matches for the Iraqi team in 2018.

However, the Iraqi coaching staff and players did not expect that Cong Phuong and his teammates did not retreat deep to defend, but instead lurked to break through and attack with passes between the three central defenders.

The 1.80m tall center back Ali Faez Atiyah was clumsy, scoring an own goal against the aggressive and enthusiastic Cong Phuong. No one dared to believe that we took the lead twice against Iraq, in the whole 90 minutes we only needed 7 shots, 4 on target and 2 goals were the numbers that spoke to the attacking efficiency of the red shirt team. Cong Phuong did not disappoint the fans in his first start.

Regrettable, blameworthy

Receiving a yellow card too early prevented Trong Hoang from tackling aggressively, allowing Hussein Ali (16) and Ali Adnan (6) to take advantage of the flanks. His experience playing for Italian clubs Atalanta and Udinese helped Ali Adnan make some dangerous crosses. Iraq's attack was stronger when coach Srecko Katanec switched to a 4-4-2 formation, freeing up some of the defender's defensive duties.

Cong Phuong was rated the best player of the match. Photo: AFC

The fact that Xuan Truong left the field at minute 65, when the score was already 2-2, was considered slow, and the weak defense made us constantly under pressure. Osama Rashid (8) had no difficulty locking down this conductor, and the two goals conceded did not see the midfielders supporting the central defenders when the opponent overwhelmed them. The young striker Mohanad Ali was too excellent, but Duy Manh should not have had situations to control the ball like that before the 16.5m box.

Ali Adnan's free kick at the end of the match left Vietnamese fans "speechless", but before that, Hong Duy's physical decline left him with no other choice. Some people will blame goalkeeper Van Lam for standing too far in the far corner, before that at the AFF Cup 2018 he also failed to predict a similar set piece situation. Dead balls are still a nightmare for Vietnam's defense, 6/10 recent goals conceded were from free kicks.

In fact, Premier League goalkeepers often choose such a position, but Van Lam is only at the level of playing in the Thai League, and in front of the ball is the 8 million USD player dubbed "Asian Gareth Bale" who played a pivotal role in the magical journey of Iraq U20 at the U20 World Cup in 2013 (winning third place overall). He scored 2 goals, including a free kick that scored against Uruguay U20 from an impossible angle, winning the title "Best Young Player in Asia" in 2013.

While Duc Chinh's entry into the field only helped the Iraqi players feel secure in attacking because this striker played rather clumsily, Humam Tariq (11) entered the field and made Van Lam's goal wobble. Looking at the game, experts all said that in addition to superior physique and physical strength, Iraq also had a good coach and many excellent individuals on the field such as Ali Adnan, Mohanad Ali, Humam Tariq.

Any team that takes the lead twice and then loses in the 90th minute is a pity, although we have to admit that Iraq is at a much higher level. We need to correctly assess our strengths and weaknesses to decide on our tactics for the upcoming matches. The problem now is how to get 1 point against Iran before aiming for victory in the match against Yemen.