Iraq coach: "Vietnam deserved to win"
Abdul Ghani Shahad believes that Vietnam deserved their victory against his team in the quarter-finals of the U23 Asian Championship, in the match on the afternoon of January 20th in China.
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Vietnam U23 team brings a breath of fresh air to the AFC U23 Asian Championship. Photo:Mr. Khoa. |
"First, I must apologize to the Iraqi fans because we didn't live up to their expectations," coach Abdul Ghani Shahad shared after the quarter-final loss to Vietnam U23. "Overall, this is a deserved result for Vietnam; they played well and made things difficult for us."
Iraq – champions in 2013 and third-place finishers in 2016 – were considered superior to Vietnam, but the reality was the opposite. Coach Abdul Ghani Shahad's players lacked cohesion, relying mainly on long balls to threaten Vietnam's goal. Two of their three goals came from aerial attacks.
Penalty shootout gives Vietnam U23 the victory.
However, Vietnam proved more effective from set pieces to secure a 3-3 draw after 120 minutes, taking the match to a penalty shootout. “Our team played well offensively. But Vietnam were equally impressive, scoring two goals from aerial balls,” Coach Shahad continued. “I take responsibility for this result. Although we had initially tried to win within 90 minutes, in football, anything can happen.”
In the semi-finals, Vietnam will face Qatar. The match will take place at 6:30 PM on Tuesday, January 23rd.
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