Vietnam suffered a defeat against Oman right on their home ground at My Dinh Stadium.

The Vietnamese players put in a tremendous effort in this match. Photo: Hai Hoang

Due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the wave of injuries, DVietnam national teamEight key players were absent from the match. The most regrettable absence was that of midfielder Nguyen Hoang Duc, who recently won the Vietnamese Golden Ball award.

In the starting lineup for this match, only Nguyen Manh andQue Ngoc HaiBoth players are originally from Nghe An province. But in this match, when we had to face the strong Oman team, the contributions of both players were very important to the final result of the game.

Vietnam has a significant psychological advantage. Photo: Hai Hoang

Vietnam had a significant psychological advantage after their recent victory against neighboring China. Furthermore, the Golden Star Warriors were playing at home with the support of thousands of fans. The fervent atmosphere in the stands boosted the Vietnamese players' morale as the opening whistle blew.

Quang Hai played quite proactively. Photo: Hai Hoang

The players in red were the ones who took the initiative in the early minutes of the match. If Tien Linh had been more alert, he could have created a chance for Vietnam. That was the situation where Quang Hai passed to Tien Linh, but the striker decided to shoot rather hastily instead of combining with his teammate.

Vietnamese fans painted My Dinh Stadium red during the match against Oman. Photo: Hai Hoang

However, Oman showed they were a superior team, controlling possession better than the home side in the later stages. Contrary to earlier predictions, Oman didn't rely heavily on long balls, instead surprising everyone with a slow, fast-paced style of play. This somewhat troubled the Vietnamese defense.

To counter the opponent's highly technical style of play, coach Park Hang-seo instructed his players to aggressively press and not allow the opponent any space.

In this match, Vietnam also opted for a defensive counter-attacking strategy. This is a familiar tactic for our national team under the South Korean strategist. By applying this style of play, the Vietnamese team created several dangerous opportunities against Oman's goal.

One of the most dangerous situations Vietnam created after more than a third of the match was Tien Linh's missed header. The player who initiated those opportunities was midfielder Quang Hai.

The player wearing number 19 crossed the ball from the left wing. Tien Linh jumped but couldn't head the ball accurately. The Oman defender cleared the ball for a corner. And in the next corner kick setup, defender Viet Anh had a chance but still couldn't finish properly.

The two teams played quite closely. Photo: Hai Hoang

Overall, in this first half, both teams played quite tightly, frequently engaging in aggressive pressing. Therefore, neither team created many scoring opportunities.

Vietnam had the first opportunity. Photo: Hai Hoang

In the second half, Vietnam had the first opportunity. Tan Tai made a one-touch pass from the right wing, the ball flying across Ibrahim's goal. However, Cong Phuong was unable to reach the ball, resulting in a rather unfortunate missed chance.

In this half, Vietnam played more effectively, with diverse and coherent attacks from both flanks. Coach Park's team created many scoring opportunities. One controversial incident occurred when Que Ngoc Hai's shot hit the hand of an Oman defender. However, after consulting VAR, the referee did not award Vietnam a penalty.

Just as Vietnam was gaining momentum, Oman unexpectedly opened the scoring in the 65th minute. The goal came from a corner kick; striker Al Hajri rose high to head the ball powerfully, sending it just inside the post and leaving Nguyen Manh helpless. The goal was largely due to defender Tan Tai's failure to closely mark the opposing striker, allowing him considerable freedom in the penalty area.

Vietnam put pressure on the visitors' half of the field. Photo: Hai Hoang

After conceding the first goal, Vietnam tried to put pressure on the visitors' half. Two consecutive opportunities came from free kicks from just outside the penalty area. However, neither Cong Phuong nor Quang Hai could equalize the score. Immediately afterwards, the clearest scoring chance of the match for the home team was unfortunately missed by Tuan Hai. It was a quick, powerful shot from the striker, but unfortunately, the shot went too high over Ibrahim's goal.

Despite their best efforts in the remaining minutes, Vietnam were unable to find an equalizer and had to accept a 0-1 defeat at home against Oman.

On March 29th, Vietnam will play against the Japanese national team.

Vietnam:Nguyen Manh, Thanh Chung, Ngoc Hai, Viet Anh, Van Thanh, Tan Tai, Tuan Anh, Quang Hai, Hung Dung, Tuan Hai, Tien Linh.

Oman:Ibrahim, Al-Kaabi, Arshad, Juma, Al-Khamisi, Al-Hajri, Zahir, Abdullah, Amjad, Salaah, Harib.