Vietnam midfielder Nguyen Quang Hai was honored by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) as one of the 10 best players in the history of the AFC U23 Championship Finals.
Quang Hai is the brightest star of the Vietnam U23 team on its historic journey to win the runner-up position at the 2018 AFC U23 Championship in Changzhou, China.
At the 2018 U23 Asian Cup, Quang Hai scored 5 goals for U23 Vietnam, the most memorable of which was a super goal against U23 Uzbekistan in the final match.
“Not every goal has a name, but Quang Hai's beautiful free kick against Uzbekistan in the 2018 final has been honored with the title 'Rainbow in the Snow.' Although Vietnam U23 did not win the championship, the tournament showed Quang Hai's talent," the AFC homepage wrote.
AFC also listed Quang Hai's achievements: "Quang Hai scored 5 goals in the historic journey to bring Vietnam to the final. Quang Hai then helped Coach Park Hang Seo's team defeat Malaysia to win the AFF Cup 2018 and also played an important role in helping the 'Golden Star Warriors' reach the last 8 of the Asian Cup 2019".
Quang Hai's impressive performance 6 years ago was recalled by AFC, and will certainly be a great motivation for the U23 Vietnam players to confidently aim for the 2024 AFC U23 Championship Finals held in Qatar.
At the 2024 AFC U23 Championship, U23 Vietnam is in Group D with Uzbekistan, Kuwait and Malaysia.
According to the schedule, the Vietnam U23 team will play its opening match against the Kuwait U23 team on April 17 at Saoud bin Abdulrahman Stadium.
Three days later, Coach Hoang Anh Tuan's team will face the Malaysian U23 team at Khalifa International Stadium.
The "Golden Star Warriors" group stage journey will end with a match against U23 Uzbekistan on April 23 at Khalifa International Stadium. U23 Uzbekistan is also considered the biggest challenge for U23 Vietnam in Group D.
Commenting on this group, AFC wrote: “Group D features former champions Uzbekistan, Kuwait, Vietnam and Malaysia. This is a group that promises to be exciting. U23 Vietnam has reached the final round after topping Group C of the qualifying round with 7 points. The victories over Guam (6-0) and Yemen (1-0) helped the “Golden Star Warriors” secure an early berth. The 2-2 draw with Singapore in the final match did not have much impact on the final result."
"U23 Vietnam will be a strong candidate for one of the top two positions in the group. A place in the quarterfinals will not be difficult for them," AFC highly appreciated U23 Vietnam under Coach Hoang Anh Tuan before the tournament. "U23 Vietnam can even become a formidable opponent no matter which team they face. With careful preparation and many quality players, U23 Vietnam promises to bring surprises at this year's tournament."
Before entering this tournament, U23 Vietnam also went through the final test when having a friendly match with U23 Jordan. In that match, U23 Vietnam lost 3-4 in the penalty shootout after the two teams drew 0-0 in the official 90 minutes.
Although they did not win, what the players showed somewhat reassured Coach Hoang Anh Tuan. Through the match, Mr. Tuan can find optimal solutions for the team.
The 2024 AFC U23 Championship Finals will take place from April 15 to May 3, 2024 in Qatar, promising to be very tense as this is also the tournament to determine Asian representatives to attend the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The three teams that finish first, second and third in the tournament will qualify directly for France. The fourth-placed team will face a CAF representative in a play-off for a place at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
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