U17 Vietnam and tears before the World Cup

U17 Vietnam - Photo 1.

Coach Cristiano Roland missed the chance to make history with U17 Vietnam - Photo: VFF

If U17 Vietnam wins a ticket to the U17 World Cup, it will be a worthy achievement. The team had a quality performance but was unlucky to be held to a 1-1 draw by U17 UAE.

World Cup within reach

On the evening of April 10, U17 Vietnam was determined to take to King Fahd Stadium to face U17 UAE. The first half was almost under the control of coach Roland's students. The red-shirted Vietnamese players entered the game confidently, organizing a methodical attack.

The goal of having to win made Hoang Trong Duy Khang and his teammates play with great enthusiasm. In the first 25 minutes, U17 Vietnam controlled 70% of the ball, creating many scoring opportunities. It is worth mentioning 3 consecutive shots by Viet Long, Chu Ngoc Nguyen Luc and Nguyen Van Khanh in the 20th minute but the ball still did not enter the net.

After a period of drilling the opponent, U17 Vietnam focused on exploiting the right wing attack following the advice of the coaching staff. Viet Long continuously passed the ball inside for his teammates to finish and one of them was finished by Duy Khang in the 23rd minute. U17 Vietnam held half of the ticket to the World Cup.

U17 UAE did not play well, they were clumsy in passing the ball. They only had their first shot after almost 2/3 of the first half but it was not on target. However, because of the only goal conceded, the determination of the UAE players in the second half was shown strongly. They did not give up until the 87th minute.

From a free kick on the right wing, Rashed crossed the ball to the far corner of the goal. Jayden Adetiba tried to pass the ball inside for Hazaa Faisal to head in. 7 minutes of extra time was not enough for either team to score another goal. This result caused U17 Vietnam to lose their place in the World Cup.

U17 Vietnam - Photo 2.

U17 Vietnam narrowly lost World Cup ticket - Photo: VFF

Tears at the Gates of Heaven

If they can maintain the score of 1-0 and 3 points, U17 Vietnam will even win the top spot in Group B. Because in the match taking place at the same time, U17 Japan was defeated by U17 Australia with a score of 2-3. Based on that result, U17 Vietnam is the top spot in the group with 5 points, U17 Japan is ranked second due to a better goal difference than Australia.

However, the 1-1 draw made U17 Vietnam go from having the chance to be first to finishing last in Group B. Coach Cristiano Roland and his team ended the tournament with 3 draws, earning 3 points, while the remaining opponents all had 4 points.

Never before has the ticket to a World Cup youth tournament been as open as the 2025 AFC U17 Finals. Now with the new format, just passing the group stage will give Vietnam and 7 other away teams a ticket to the World Cup.

The AFC U17 Championship Finals will feature 16 teams, with eight spots at the 2025 U17 World Cup. The tournament will be held in Qatar from November 3 to 27. For the first time, the 2025 U17 World Cup will be expanded to 48 teams. That is why Vietnam U17 is just minutes away from a spot at the world football festival.

Seeing the young Vietnamese players wiping away tears after the match ended, one can understand how regretful they felt. The World Cup door not only opened the door for them to experience, but also promoted investment in youth football in Vietnam in general. Unfortunately, that dream did not happen.

However, with what they have shown against the top teams in the continent, the U17 Vietnam players are very encouraging. This will be the luggage for the young players to continue their efforts, hoping to reap future results for Vietnamese football.