AFC leaders praise Vietnam team

Vietnam 2-4 Japan.

Despite losing the match against Japan, the Vietnamese team left behind some impressive moments. Coach Philippe Troussier’s players even led 2-1 at one point before losing 2-4.

The leaders of the Asian Football Confederation and the federations of the countries present at the event all sent their congratulations and compliments to the Vietnamese team for their recent performance, including two goals scored by Nguyen Dinh Bac and Pham Tuan Hai. The leaders of the federations wished coach Philippe Troussier and his team good luck and to achieve their goals.

Before the match against Japan - a world-class team, the Vietnamese team carefully prepared a countermeasure. Coach Philippe Troussier and captain Do Hung Dung both hoped for a surprise, but fans understood that the chance of scoring points against Japan was not high. Therefore, limiting the number of goals conceded played an important role in the entire group stage campaign to secure a place in the next round.

" I think the Japanese team still played very well today. They are a top team in the world. However, we prepared very carefully and had our own tactics when meeting Japan. The result was not as expected, but the Vietnamese team proved that there were still times when we played well. I hope that the whole team will continue to do this in the next matches ," Do Hung Dung shared.

The Vietnam team created many difficulties for Japan.

Meanwhile, coach Hajime Moriyasu admitted that his team had learned a lesson after the opening match. He said: " The match against Vietnam taught us that there is no easy match in the Asian Cup. In the match against Vietnam in the World Cup qualifiers, we had problems with set pieces. Coming to the Asian Cup, every team will focus on this. I think the team must adjust accordingly ."

Having 2 goals as capital as well as not receiving any penalty cards will create an advantage if the Vietnamese team has to compare additional indexes with opponents.

In the next round, the Vietnamese team will face Indonesia. This is considered a key match, with decisive significance for the Vietnamese team's place in the next round. This match will take place at 9:30 p.m. on January 19, at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium.