U22 Vietnam won a hard-fought victory over U22 Laos

Van Tung scored the opening goal for U22 Vietnam. Photo: Hai Hoang

In the series of matches preparing for the 32nd Sea Games under coach Troussier, U22 Vietnam had to accept defeat. Many spectators expressed doubts about the strength of the Golden Star team in this congress. However, experts said that these were only friendly matches, so the French coach did not put too much emphasis on the results, he only focused on having his students apply the correct playing style that he taught.

The opening match of U22 Vietnam at the 32nd Sea Games will be the exact answer to the true strength of the team led by coach Troussier. Because the result of the match with U22 Laos is very important, directly affecting the race for a ticket to the semi-finals of U22 Vietnam.

In addition, Nghe An fans also pay great attention to two young talents of Song Lam Nghe An, Ho Van Cuong and Dinh Xuan Tien. However, in this opening match, only Ho Van Cuong was able to enter the field from the start. The defender wearing the number 13 shirt was arranged to play in the right wing position.

With their superior class, U22 Vietnam had no difficulty in actively controlling the match and pressing their opponents as soon as the ball started. And coach Troussier's team soon gained the advantage with the opening goal in the 2nd minute of the match. From an attack on the right wing, Ho Van Cuong dropped the ball down for Thanh Nhan to cross the ball accurately into the penalty area for Van Tung. The striker wearing the number 9 shirt, launched a tricky header into the far corner, leaving goalkeeper Thilayvong with no chance to block.

Van Cuong plays aggressively on the right wing. Photo: Hai Hoang

After the opening goal, U22 Vietnam still maintained a high attack tempo, with continuous attacks. Ho Van Cuong, with his speed, created many situations to penetrate the opponent's penalty area on the right wing, causing the U22 Laos defenders to be quite confused.

In the 25th minute, a player from Song Lam Nghe An sent the ball inside quite reasonably for Van Tung, unfortunately the striker wearing shirt number 9 was a bit slow to get in.

Besides, Le Van Do also demonstrated his technical qualities when bringing a quite diverse playing style on the left wing.

In the 40th minute, this same player created a golden opportunity for U22 Vietnam. However, Le Van Do's powerful low shot into the far corner missed the post by a hair's breadth.

Entering the second half, we witnessed the strong rise of U22 Laos. The left wing was where coach Michael Weiss's students focused on attacking. The attacks of Chonvy and Angot made Duy Cuong face many difficulties.

On the other hand, the disjointed play of U22 Vietnam made Laos more confident. If they were luckier, Mr. Weiss's team could have equalized the score in the 75th minute. From a set-piece free kick on the right wing, Sangvilay hung high, allowing Theo to jump high and head the ball, hitting the crossbar. Chony's follow-up shot was deflected out by Van Chuan's reflex.

After escaping defeat, U22 Vietnam's playing style still did not improve, even though coach Troussier sent Dinh Xuan Tien onto the field to increase flexibility in the midfield.

Laos put a lot of pressure on Quan Van Chuan's goal. Coach Michael Weiss's students continuously created attacks.

In the 88th minute, Xaypanya had a face-to-face situation with Quan Van Chuan but his shot hit the goalkeeper.

Quoc Viet's joy after doubling the gap for U22 Vietnam. Photo: Hai Hoang

However, in the extra minutes, U22 Vietnam ended U22 Laos's hopes of scoring points with a goal scored by Quoc Viet.

Starting from Khuat Van Khang's attack on the left wing. The midfielder of Viettel made a cross for Quoc Viet to easily double the gap. And that was also the final score of the match.

This was a hard-fought victory for coach Troussier’s players. After this match, the French coach still has a lot of work to do for U22 Vietnam.