Vietnam 1-0 Laos: Chau Ngoc Quang opens the score

In the first minutes, mistakes were made in the Vietnamese defense. Van Vi's careless pass allowed Bounphachan Bounkong to enter the penalty area. Luck was on Vietnam's side when the linesman raised his flag to signal an offside by the captain of the Lao team.

In the 7th minute, the Vietnamese team had their first chance. After a high pass from his teammate, Vo Hoang Minh Khoa broke through and fired a powerful shot that went just wide of the post. Number 9 was playing with determination in his debut match for the national team.

Vietnam's continuous pressure from both sides was rewarded with the opening goal in the 11th minute. Defender No. 22 Sonevilay's effort to intercept the ball created conditions for Ngoc Quang to comfortably finish from less than 5 meters away, putting the home team ahead.

Vietnam team entered the match proactively against Laos. Photo: Minh Chien, Anh Tien.

The starting lineup against Laos had 5 changes compared to the friendly match against Cambodia, in which the midfield and two wings had the most changes. Nguyen Van Vi, Truong Tien Anh, Chau Ngoc Quang, Minh Khoa and Tien Linh were on the field from the start.

The rotation of personnel clearly shows Coach Kim's intention in assessing the overall force, while ensuring the physical strength of the pillars during the dense competition period.

Vietnam will face Malaysia, Nepal and Laos in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers. Being in the top seed group and not having to face teams in the world's top 100, the "Golden Star Warriors" will avoid some strong teams. All three opponents in the group are considered to be of equal strength.

The history of confrontation is completely in favor of the Vietnamese team. Historically, the "Golden Star Warriors" have been undefeated against their neighboring opponents. The last time Laos did not lose to Vietnam was in 1996.

The appeal of the Vietnamese team increased after winning the ASEAN Cup. Photo: Tam Minh.

Speaking before the match, coach Kim Sang-sik said the priority of the Vietnamese team is victory: "The first match is very important for our goal of qualifying. Hopefully our players will score many goals in the first half."

On the other hand, coach Ha Hyeok-jun only aims to score points against Vietnam: "We want to cause many difficulties for Vietnam, because they are a strong team. The match will be very difficult but I hope my students will have a good performance."