U23 Vietnam wins "shocking" victory over U23 Australia

In the first minutes of the match, the ball mainly rolled on the U23 Vietnam field, U23 Australia controlled the ball well but did not create any dangerous opportunities. U23 Australia controlled the ball up to 74%.

U23 Australia was the one who had the first dangerous opportunity. In the 21st minute, Hrustic had a very technical dribble before firing a shot that went wide of goalkeeper Tien Dung's goal. A heart-stopping situation for Vietnamese football fans.

Not giving up, in the 33rd minute, U23 Vietnam had an answer. Van Hau from the left wing had a long pass for Cong Phuong to run down. Gersbach received the ball first but handled it wrongly, giving Phuong a chance to rush past goalkeeper Izzo, but Tongyik was able to clear the ball to save the empty goal.

Once again, Quang Hai made people remember him. In the 38th minute, this player launched a very beautiful technical curling shot but the U23 Australia goalkeeper was alert, flying all the way to punch the ball to receive a corner kick.

Striker Cong Phuong has played less individually. Photo: AFC

In the second half, to increase their attacking ability, U23 Australia adjusted their lineup when number 9 replaced Juric, and the player wearing number 22 replaced Hrustic.

And the pressure continued to be put on the Vietnamese defense. In the 68th minute, after a cross from the right wing into the penalty area, Blackwood headed the ball into the net of goalkeeper Tien Dung. However, the referee did not recognize the goal of U23 Australia because Blackwood finished in an offside position.

With a defensive counter-attacking strategy and a reasonable formation, U23 Vietnam made it difficult for the opponent despite having less ball control. And the great thing for Vietnamese fans came in the 72nd minute, after the ball bounced out, midfielder Quang Hai decisively finished from outside the penalty area, scoring the opening goal for U23 Vietnam.

Striker Nguyen Quang Hai is the bright spot of U23 Vietnam. Photo: AFC

After scoring a goal, U23 Vietnam continued to stabilize the squad and strain to withstand the dangerous situations created by U23 Australia. In the 81st minute, after a cross from the left wing into the penalty area, player wearing the number 9 jersey Blackwood headed the ball against the crossbar of goalkeeper Tien Dung.

Declining physical strength and impatience caused the Australian U23 strikers to miss all the good chances in the second half, while the Vietnamese U23 played a match full of spirit, thereby defeating their opponents with a score of 1-0. This was the first victory of a Southeast Asian team at the AFC U23 Championship.

This result gives U23 Vietnam a chance to advance to the next round while currently ranked 2nd in Group D with 3 points, the same as their opponent and U23 Korea. However, if U23 Australia does not play well in the final match of the group stage, they may be eliminated because the AFC U23 Championship calculates head-to-head results. /.

Starting lineup:

U23 Vietnam: Tien Dung, Dinh Trong, Tien Dung, Duy Manh, Van Thanh, Van Hau, Duc Huy, Xuan Truong, Duc Chinh, Quang Hai, Cong Phuong.

U23 Australia: Izzo, Gersbach, Susnjar, Buhagiar, Mauk, Hrustic, McGree, Baccus, Champness, Juric, Tongyik