HCMC – The Vietnamese national squad tied 1-1 with Singapore in the second game of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) Sonha Cup on Thursday at My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi while South Korea U23 also did the same with North Korea, securing the top spot in the four-team tournament in the earlier game.
The Vietnamese side began the game with a changed lineup after a 0-2 loss to South Korea U23 in their opener. Midfielder Phan Van Tai Em and defender Huynh Quang Thanh made his debut at the tournament, replacing midfielder Le Tan Tai defender Dang Van Phong from the beginning. Defender Le Phuoc Tu and midfielder Pham Thanh Luong also played in the first minutes.
Though the game was only a friendly, the competition between hosts Vietnam and archrivals Singapore is always fiercely competitive, moreover, the tournament is considered the final test for both Vietnam and Singapore before the Southeast Asian championship/AFF Suzuki Cup 2010, which will be held in Vietnam and Indonesia from December 1 to 29.
The chief coach of the national football team Coach Henrique Calisto and his squad made their final preparations to defend the AFF-Suzuki Cup where Vietnam have been drawn in Group B with Singapore, the Philippines and Myanmar.
Under heavy pressure from local fans, hosts Vietnam put their rivals under a lot of pressure, while the Singaporean squad, with height advantage, looked composed and confident throughout and caused the home team problems with their rare counter attacks.
Although the Vietnamese players had the most possession over the first minutes and managed to create dozens of chances, the Singaporean side defense resiliently held out to keep a clean sheet.
Singapore surprisingly took an advance in a rare attack when Shi Jiayi scored for his team in the 25th minute after receiving the ball from Duric in the penalty box.
In the second half, coach Henrique Calisto made some key changes when Nguyen Huy Hoang and Le Sy Manh made their debut, replacing Le Tan Tai and Nguyen Minh Phuong in the first minutes of the second half. Nguyen Trong Hoang replaced Pham Thanh Luong in the 58th minute.
Although the Vietnamese players had the most possession over the second half and managed to create dozens of chances, however, the spectators waiting for 30 minutes into the second half to celebrate the hosts’ leveling when Phan Van Tai Em netted for his team with a comfortable kick after receiving the ball from midfielder Le Sy Manh in the penalty box.
In the earlier game on Thursday, North Korea tied 1-1 with South Korea U23. Ri Myong Jun scored for the North Korean side just three minutes into the game while Jung Woo Young equalized for South Korea in the 37th minute with a penalty kick.
With the draw, North Korea and South Korea U23 earned four points each but the South Korean side secured the top spot thanks to the goal difference. Both Vietnam and the Singapore’s hopes of winning the cup were faded when they secured just one each from two games.
The champions will be decided on Saturday when South Korea U23 will play Singapore at 5:00 p.m. and Vietnam take on North Korea at 7:00 p.m. in the final games.
The national football teams from Singapore, North Korea and hosts Vietnam together with the U23 team of South Korea are competing in the annual tournament. The four teams are playing in a round-robin tournament with the team that gets the most points being declared the championship. The tournament is taking place from Tuesday to Saturday in Hanoi.
Hosts Vietnam beat Myanmar 5-1 in their opening match at the fourth edition of the Thanh Nien-sponsored International U21 Football Tournament at HCMC’s Thong Nhat Stadium on Saturday.
The U21 Malaysian squad arrived at the Tan Son Nhat International Airport on Thursday morning
