U23 Vietnam meets U23 Malaysia at 8pm tonight: When the flag is in your hand, wave it.

There is so much to say after the 3-1 victory of U23 Vietnam over Kuwait in the opening match of Group D of the 2024 AFC U23 Championship a few days ago. That is the limited capacity of the two teams, the undeserved red cards, the case of Nguyen Ngoc Thang, the unbelievable miss of Nguyen Minh Quang or the double of Bui Vi Hao. Too much to say, too much to analyze.

But all of that is not as important as the result at this moment. Although it cannot be a victory that satisfies us, the most important thing is that we have 3 points. This victory is a great premise for U23 Vietnam to pass the group stage.

The one-sided match between U23 Uzbekistan and Malaysia shows the big gap between the two teams in Group D and further confirms the number one position of the Central Asian representative. Behind them, U23 Vietnam has a big advantage as they have won against their direct opponent. In this situation, as long as they do not lose to Malaysia, U23 Vietnam will have 4 points and almost certainly advance.

The first 3 points against Kuwait also helped U23 Vietnam enter the match with Malaysia as the favorites. Coach Hoang Anh Tuan's team had the opportunity to play slowly, play stealthily and anticipate the opponent's mistakes. On the other hand, the Malaysians understood that victory was the only option if they still had hope in the AFC U23 Championship Finals.

However, Malaysia does not have much basis to win.

In the 90 minutes before, Uzbekistan only saw 2 shots on target from U23 Malaysia compared to 19 from their opponents. The West Asian team had 59% possession of the ball, superior in the number of chances, corner kicks, and ball disputes both in the air and on the ground. Having received 19 shots, 12 of which were in the penalty area, U23 Malaysia should have lost more heavily. The weakness of U23 Malaysia is the basis for coach Hoang Anh Tuan and his team to dream of a second victory, which means an early ticket to the quarterfinals.

At this point in the U23 Asia, it can be said that U23 Vietnam is lucky. The first luck is that they only have to face the strongest team in the group, Uzbekistan, in the last round. The second luck is that they are facing opponents who are having problems (Kuwait has been in crisis since before the tournament and Malaysia has just lost the first match). The team also has an advantage because the opponent received a red card and was "given" a goal thanks to the goalkeeper in the match against Kuwait.

The team under coach Hoang Anh Tuan is clearly not good yet but is lucky and perhaps that is enough to move forward.

Opponents U23 Malaysia also do not have much to stop Vietnam’s dream. Last year, they lost to U23 Vietnam, led by coach Hoang Anh Tuan, with a score of 1-4 in the semi-finals of U23 Southeast Asia. Their form is also disappointing, losing all 3 recent matches. Before that, they also struggled, winning one narrowly and drawing one against India in March.

The U23 Malaysia squad also does not have any outstanding players. The most notable name is Luqman Hakim who plays in Japan but only for Yokohama in the J3 League. The remaining 22 Malaysian players only play in the country. They have a few naturalized players but the quality is not too high, cannot be compared with the neighbors in the same region Indonesia or Thailand.

Expected lineup

U23 Malaysia:Azim Al Amin, Zikri Khalili, Adam Afkar, Safwan Mazlan, Nooa Laine, Mukhairi Ajmal, Abu Khalil, Ubaidullah Shamsul, Fergus Tierney, Luqman Hakim, Asim Rosli.

U23 Vietnam:Van Chuan, Duy Cuong, Le Nguyen Hoang, Hong Phuc, Van Cuong, Thai Son, Minh Khoa, Van Khang, Van Tung, Van Truong, Vi Hao.