UAE - Vietnam: Host 'dethrones'?

Going into this match, UAE’s goal is nothing more than to win all 3 points. Because with a draw or loss, they will officially finish in 2nd place in Group G. Even the possibility of becoming one of the 5 second-place teams with the best performance is extremely fragile.

That said, coach Bert van Marwijk and his team are in a "back-to-the-wall" position. Only a victory over Vietnam can help UAE rekindle their hopes of participating in the 2022 World Cup Finals. That will put Ali Mabkhout and his teammates under a lot of pressure, even though they are playing at home.

The first leg match between the two teams took place at the end of 2019 at My Dinh Stadium. Photo: VFF

However, in many aspects, especially in terms of pure expertise, the UAE is still slightly better than the reigning AFF Cup champion. Currently, coach Bert van Marwijk has a series of quality stars playing for famous clubs in the continent such as Al-Ahli Dubai, Al Jazira...

Under the guidance of coach Bert van Marwijk in his "second term", UAE has become a cohesive and combative team, at least compared to themselves nearly 2 years ago. The devastating victories over Malaysia (4-0), Thailand (3-1) and Indonesia (5-0) have partly demonstrated the terrible strength of Ali Mabkhout and his teammates.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the battle line,Vietnam teamwithout the guidance of coach Park Hang-seo. Without needing to analyze carefully, everyone understands that the absence of the Korean strategist on the coaching bench will greatly affect the mentality of the red shirt players.

Coach Park Hang-seo was suspended from coaching because he received two yellow cards. Photo: Doc Lap

It seems that the home team UAE possesses all the elements: favorable time - favorable location - favorable people. Surely, coach Bert van Marwijk and his team will make the most of their advantages to defeat Vietnam, and at the same time take the No. 1 position of Group G from their opponents, something they failed to do in the first leg (lost 0 - 1).

It is very likely that, with the disadvantages compared to the UAE, Coach Park Hang-seo and his team will have to accept the first and only defeat in Group G of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers in Asia. Hopefully, if the above case happens, Vietnam will not lose the opportunity to be present in the final qualifying round./.