U23 Vietnam 0-0 U23 Japan: Coach Miura waits for the second earthquake
U23 Japan is the strongest opponent in Group I, but coach Toshiya Miura and the U23 Vietnam players still hope for a surprising result against their home team, similar to what Olympic Vietnam did at ASIAD 17 when they met Iran.
Whichever team wins the match at 7:15 pm tonight will secure the top spot in Group I, meaning a ticket to the 2016 AFC U23 Championship.
In recent confrontations, especially at the U19 level, Japanese football often wins over Vietnamese football, but with youth football, surprises are completely possible.
In an interview with the Japanese press before this match, coach Toshiya Miura stated: "U23 Vietnam has a number of very promising players who have grown up from the U19 team. Some players have followed me since the ASIAD and AFF Cup 2014. There are also some who cannot follow my training plan. However, the strengths and weaknesses of the U23 Vietnam players, let's wait for tonight's match."
Meanwhile, Mr. Makoto Teguramori, head coach of U23 Japan said: "Compared to the opening match with Macau which had to be played at 3:00 p.m. in quite hot weather, we will meet U23 Vietnam in cooler weather conditions. Therefore, the players will ensure better physical strength.
U23 Vietnam is a good team, playing together and closely. Therefore, although we scored 7 goals against Macau, we need to improve our attacking ability to win against U23 Vietnam."
Expected lineup
According to TTVH