Controversial referee, U22 Vietnam helpless against Indonesia's ugly play

(Baonghean.vn) - Indonesia's ugly playing style and the confusing referee controlling the match made it extremely difficult for U22 Vietnam.

» SEA Games 29: Live broadcast of U22 Vietnam vs U22 Indonesia

In the first minutes of the match, U22 Vietnam and U22 Indonesia both entered the game with a fairly open game. U22 Vietnam had the first chance of the match in the 44th minute. Midfielder Xuan Truong passed the ball to Tuan Tai who made a very good wall, however, Hong Duy's shot was inaccurate.

Goalkeeper Phi Minh Long and the U22 Vietnam defense had a good match. Photo: Duc Dong

The first truly dangerous opportunity came in the 26th minute, Van Toan had a very open move down the wing, before passing the ball inside for the strikers to run up. However, Tuan Tai could not finish successfully as he rushed in slower than the opponent's goalkeeper.

In the following minutes, U22 Vietnam controlled the ball more, but Indonesia also showed a very tight and annoying style of play right from the middle of the field. With the ability to coordinate between Van Thanh and Van Toan, U22 Vietnam's attacking ability mainly appeared on the right wing.

In the remaining minutes of the first half, the opposing team gradually regained control of the game. However, with very fierce tackles, U22 Indonesia also proved to be very dangerous in counter-attacks. Many times goalkeeper Phi Minh Long had to show his talent to save U22 Vietnam.

The most notable opportunity before the break belonged to defender Van Thanh. In this phase, Hong Duy had a delicate pass for Van Thanh to head, unfortunately his shot could not beat goalkeeper Satria Tama of Indonesia. The two teams had to accept the end of the first 45 minutes without any goals being scored.

The match was extremely intense and dramatic. Photo: Duc Dong

In the second half, there were more and more fouls committed by Indonesian players towards U22 Vietnam. The opposing team actively played very aggressively right from the middle of the field to limit Vietnam's attack. And the target of the fouls committed by the opponent was none other than Duy Manh, Van Toan, Tuan Tai and Cong Phuong.

In the 56th minute, U22 Vietnam had the first chance in the second half. Striker Cong Phuong had a solo run among 5 Indonesian players, but his final shot was blocked by the goalkeeper.

The highlight of the match came in the 63rd minute when Indonesia was down to 10 men. The opposing team's number 21, Rezaldi, received a second yellow card after repeatedly fouling Van Toan and Tuan Tai. In this context, midfielder Nguyen Tuan Anh was brought on to replace Duy Manh to increase the attack and show his determination to win.

The referee's confusion came in the 85th minute, when Indonesian players continuously lay on the ground to prolong the time. At the same time, there was a clear dangerous foul by the opposing team's defender in the penalty area against Quang Hai, but the referee did not award a penalty to U22 Vietnam.

When Quang Hai was brought onto the field to replace Hong Duy not long ago, U22 Vietnam had a good chance to score in the 90th minute. However, Tuan Tai shot straight at the Indonesian goalkeeper and unfortunately the ball hit the crossbar and went out.

Unable to score after countless good chances, U22 Vietnam had to accept a draw against Indonesia. With this result, U22 Vietnam needs to win against U22 Thailand in the final match on August 24 if they want to secure a ticket to the semi-finals. Because in the previous match, U22 Thailand defeated U22 Philippines with a score of 2-0. Currently, U22 Vietnam still has the advantage when temporarily ranked first in the group with 10 points and a coefficient of +11.

Current standings in Group B, men's football SEA Games - Photo: Screenshot

Video of Tuan Tai's missed opportunity in the 90th minute

Trung Kien