Coach Nguyen Thanh Vinh: "Park Hang-seo has transformed U23 Vietnam"

Vietnam defeated Iraq in a match filled with all sorts of emotions. Photo:AFC

“This is the great thing about football. U23 Vietnam has brought fans a match full of emotions,” Coach Nguyen Thanh Vinh shared proudly after Vietnam defeated Iraq in the quarter-finals of the U23 Asian Cup. The result made his whole family so excited they couldn’t sleep.

“The first thing to praise is the mentality of U23 Vietnam. The players played steadily, without any fear. Even when the opponent took the lead at the beginning of the first extra time or equalized with only a few minutes left in the second extra time, they still did not lose their mentality and showed cold precision in the penalty shootout. Coach Park Hang-seo did a great job in the mentality aspect - an inherent weakness of the Vietnamese teams," added coach Nguyen Thanh Vinh.

After a 1-1 draw after 90 minutes, Vietnam and Iraq had to play extra time. Ayem headed Iraq ahead in the first extra time, but in the second extra time, Vietnam turned the tables in just 4 minutes, from 108 to 112 with two goals from Van Duc and Duc Chinh.

Although Alaa equalized with only 4 minutes left in the match, Coach Park Hang-seo's students still kept a cool head to execute the goal.successall five penalties, won 5-3.

“It has been a long time since I have seen a Vietnamese team play on par with, and not inferior to, strong Asian opponents. Of course, in terms of tactics, Coach Park Hang-seo is flexible, sometimes playing defensive counter-attacks, and sometimes attacking with all his might.

In the second extra time, when they were behind, Vietnam took the initiative to attack and played very well against Iraq, one of the top teams in Asia. Coach Park Hang-seo has truly transformed U23 Vietnam,” said coach Nguyen Thanh Vinh excitedly.

The former captain of SLNA, Hanoi FC and U23 Vietnam was also surprised by the physical foundation of Coach Park Hang-seo’s students. “The physical preparation was so good, it changed completely. They rested one day less than Iraq but still ran well for 120 minutes. That is truly admirable.”

Before the U23 tournament started, Vietnam was considered one of the weakest teams, at risk of being eliminated early. However, coach Park Hang-seo and his team created a series of shocks, writing a fairy tale in the tournament in China, entering the top four strongest teams. Vietnam will play the semi-final against Qatar at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, January 23.

Lam Thoa