With a beautiful header that scored against Japan at Al Thumama Stadium (Qatar) on the evening of January 14, Dinh Bac is the youngest player to score at the 2023 Asian Cup.
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| Dinh Bac rejoices after scoring against the Japanese team. (Source: AP) |
In the 16th minute of the match between Vietnam and Japan, when the score was 1-0 in favor of the team from the Land of the Rising Sun, from a situation where he received the ball from a corner kick by captain Hung Dung, Dinh Bac moved and then flew to head the ball back into the net, leaving goalkeeper Zion Suzuki standing still and watching.
A somewhat lucky goal, but also considered a masterpiece at the 2023 Asian Cup. Japan's Sports Hochi newspaper commented: "Japan has conceded many goals against a Southeast Asian team for the first time in 5 years.
The Vietnamese team performed very well despite only being ranked 94th on the FIFA rankings." After the match, coach Hajime Moriyasu admitted that the Vietnamese team taught Japan a lesson.
Dinh Bac's goal became even more meaningful as he was the youngest player to score at the 2023 Asian Cup, up to the time the match between Vietnam and Japan took place.
Dinh Bac (19 years, 5 months and 5 days) is also the 4th youngest player to score a goal at the Asian football festival in the past 2 decades.
The three players who scored at a younger age than him are Son Heung Min (South Korea; 18 years, 6 months, 10 days), Mohanad Ali (Iraq; 18 years, 6 months, 19 days) and Magid Mohamed Hassan (Qatar; 18 years, 9 months, 17 days).
Notably, this goal also helped Dinh Bac break Phan Thanh Binh's record, becoming the youngest player to score for the Vietnamese team at the Asian Cup. Previously, at the 2007 Asian Cup at home, in the match where Vietnam tied Qatar 1-1, Phan Thanh Binh scored at the age of 20 years, 8 months and 10 days.
At the 2023 Asian Cup, many people think that Dinh Bac is lucky to have a starting position when Tien Linh is injured and has to miss the continental tournament. However, looking at the maturity of the Quang Nam Club player, it is completely reasonable for coach Philippe Troussier to trust and give him a chance.
Emerging from the 2023 First Division with 8 goals and 7 assists, helping Quang Nam promoted to the V-League, Dinh Bac was voted the best player of the tournament. In the 2023/24 V-League, the young player of Quang Nam Club scored 2 goals after 7 appearances. At the national team level, Dinh Bac played for the U19, U23, Olympic and Vietnam national teams.
In Vietnam's victory over the Philippines in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Dinh Bac made his mark with the goal that sealed the 2-0 win in his first appearance for the national team. Coach Philippe Troussier was very pleased and affirmed that his student will go far.
Dinh Bac said that his strengths are speed and the ability to dribble in the opponent's third of the field. Coach Troussier demands a lot from young players, so he himself has to try his best to practice to be given the opportunity.
As the youngest player of the Vietnamese team, one of the 7 youngest players of the 2023 Asian Cup, Dinh Bac is really expected and hoped that he will continue to shine, helping the Vietnamese team complete the goal of passing the group stage.
( according to Dan Tri )
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