Vietnam U19 coach before match against Japan: 'We have nothing to lose'

Before the final match of the U19 Asian Cup today, coach Hoang Anh Tuan said Japan is very strong but in football anything can happen.

“Japan is one of the top teams in Asia, both at youth and senior level. And at this year’s U19 Asian Cup, they are the number one candidate for the championship. In the group stage and quarter-finals, the team scored 10 goals and did not concede a single one. That shows that they not only attack well but also defend very solidly,” said coach Hoang Anh Tuan.

Japan topped Group C, beating Yemen 3-0, drawing Iran 0-0 and defeating Qatar 3-0. In the quarter-finals, the team from the land of the rising sun continued to demonstrate their strength when they defeated Tajikistan 4-0. Meanwhile, Vietnam became the big surprise of the tournament when they defeated North Korea 2-1, drew UAE 1-1, held Iraq 0-0 in the group stage and defeated host Bahrain 1-0 in the quarter-finals. Coach Hoang Anh Tuan and his team created a historic milestone when they reached the semi-finals, winning a ticket to the 2017 U20 World Cup.

Coach Hoang Anh Tuan said Vietnam will continue to play defense and counterattack.

“The semi-final match against Japan will be extremely difficult, but we are ready. My players and I have nothing to lose in this match. The whole team will play with great determination to win. After this match, whether we win or lose is not the problem, the important thing is what my players learn,” added coach Hoang Anh Tuan.

On the other side of the front line, coach Atsushi Uchiyama said he and his students are full of determination to win the tournament in Bahrain. Always highly rated, Japan has never won the Asian U19 tournament. They have finished second six times, most recently in 2006.

“I am very impressed with Vietnam, the players of this team have good individual skills, sharp playing style. However, in the semi-final match, we also tried our best, playing offensively to win,” coach Atsushi Uchiyama shared. “Japan has two goals at the U19 Asian Cup this year. The first is to win a ticket to the 2017 U20 World Cup, which we have completed. The next is to win the championship. We will do our best to defeat Vietnam and reach the final. It would be great to go to the U20 World Cup next year as the Asian champions.”

At the U19 Asian Cup two years ago, Japan and Vietnam were in the same group. At that time, the team from the land of the rising sun easily defeated the generation of Cong Phuong, Tuan Anh, Xuan Truong... with a score of 3-1.

According to VNE