Top scorer is also good…

Xuan Son shares his feelings

Coach Kim Sang-sik, Xuan Son, Van Toan, Quang Hai,... were in the first group of the Vietnamese team to move to Noi Bai airport at noon on December 27.

Arriving at Changi Airport (Singapore), the team members were all in a relaxed and happy mood after the 2-0 victory over the host team Singapore in the first leg of the AFF Cup semi-final.

Coach Kim Sang-sik in a relaxed mood before boarding the plane

Xuan Son takes photos with female fans at the airport

Responding to a reporter from Bong Da Newspaper, talking about the prospect of becoming the tournament's top scorer, Xuan Son said: "For now, I still think more about the overall results of the whole team. But the title of top scorer also sounds interesting, doesn't it? I will score many more goals for the Vietnam team in the next matches. Let's wait and see," Xuan Son shared.

Van Toan and his teammates at the airport this afternoon

The first leg of the semi-final on Singapore's Jalan Besar artificial turf pitch was very unpredictable. Singapore, although dominating the ball control, was completely outclassed in terms of goal scoring opportunities compared to the Vietnamese team. One of the most controversial points was the overly active involvement of VAR, including a beautiful goal by Xuan Son - which if recognized would have been a masterpiece. In the end, the Vietnamese team still got what they needed, a safe 2-goal away win thanks to the brilliant final minutes of the duo Xuan Son - Tien Linh.

The return leg at Viet Tri Stadium (Phu Tho) is expected to be easier as the team will have the support of tens of thousands of home fans and will be playing on a familiar natural grass field with a comfortable mentality because they have already scored 2 goals. However, coach Kim Sang-sik and his players certainly cannot be complacent because we have seen how the Vietnamese team struggled during the 90 minutes of official play in the first leg of the semi-final.

Scoring 2 goals in injury time, Vietnam beat Singapore in a match with all VAR

Xuan Son continues to have an excellent match with the title of "Best Player of the Match"

Tien Linh with the opening goal, FIFA World Cup posted a picture on the fanpage

Sharing after the match, coach Kim Sang-sik also admitted that the whole team had encountered many difficulties and expressed his opinion on the referee's VAR situations:

"I thank the fans who traveled all the way from home to cheer for the Vietnamese team. I would like to dedicate this victory to all the fans. We tried to adapt to the weather and the pitch conditions. The first half was really difficult. However, we got back on track with adjustments. This result gives us many advantages for the second leg and now we are ready. The decision to deny Xuan Son's goal was really unlucky for us. However, we all have to obey and respect the referees. They have managed a successful match. I thank them," said Mr. Kim.

Coach Kim Sang-sik received a yellow card in the first leg of the semi-final for protesting.

The team needs to learn from experience.

Both Singapore and Vietnam teams were said to have played with great effort . Singapore was considered to have a squad of players with good physique and strong in high balls. Coach Kim said he felt lucky that the team did not concede any goals in the match. In addition, the Korean strategist also expressed satisfaction with Dinh Trieu's performance. However, he admitted that no player is perfect and the whole team will need to learn from individual mistakes in the last match.

Great save by Dinh Trieu

"Although there were difficult moments, we overcame them. This is a well-deserved victory for the whole team. I went to Son's side and consoled him after the passionate and brave match. Son told me about the disallowed goal, that it was a valid play, the ball touched his chest, not his hand. It was a pity that the referee disallowed the goal after consulting VAR. However, we all have to respect the referee. We will try to play well in the second leg of the semi-finals to achieve the goal of winning the championship like 6 years ago. It will not be easy, but we will concentrate highly," said coach Kim Sang-sik.

Fans waited all night in the cold to buy tickets for the second leg of the Vietnam - Singapore semi-final

Regarding the Singapore team, strategist Ogura Tsutomu said that the biggest difference between the two teams in the last match was that the Vietnamese team took advantage of opportunities better.

"In the last minutes of injury time, we lost 2 goals. It turns out that football is not a game that is limited to 90 minutes. Vietnam and Singapore both had chances, but Vietnam took advantage and punished Singapore. This match was also full of drama, I felt like watching a movie. From VAR, the goal was denied and then the penalty. The match lasted too long, nearly 15 minutes of injury time, making Singapore players tired and losing concentration.

Singapore coach Oruga believes his team has not run out of chances.

My players also lacked the experience to prevent the second goal. I told my players after the first half that if we could keep the score at 0-0 until the end of the second half, we would be confident before the second leg of the semi-finals. The most important thing now is for the players to focus on recovering in time to regain their fitness for the second leg. The semi-finals are still ongoing, they are not over yet. We still have a chance to reach the final," said Mr. Ogura.

Asean Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2024 is broadcast live and in full on FPT Play, at: http://fptplay.vn

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/xuan-son-cung-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-ve-nuoc-lai-noi-loi-gan-ruot-vua-pha-luoi-cung-hay-185241227092532907.htm