Nguyen Thanh Nhan gets the winner
Vietnam defeated Korea 7-6 on penalties to secure third place in the AFC U23 Asian Cup Saudi Arabia at the King Abdullah Sports City Hall Stadium in Saudi Arabia last night.
In a thrilling tie which ended 2-2 after extra time, Nguyen Quoc Viet’s opener was cancelled out by Kim Tae-won with Nguyen Dinh Bac then restoring the Southeast Asian side’s lead.
The Vietnam captain was, however, sent off late in the game, with Korea Republic equalising through Shin Min-ha deep into added on time to force an additional 30 minutes and the penalty shootout, with goalkeeper Cao Van Bình saving the seventh spot-kick to secure third place for his side.
Vietnam’s leading scorer Dinh Bac, with three goals, was part of a revamped line-up featuring eight changes from the semi-final defeat to China while Korea Republic opted for the strike pair of Jung Seung-bae and Jeong Jae-sang.
The Southeast Asian side threatened early through Dinh Bac and Nguyen Thai Son, while Korea Republic’s short-passing game forced Van Bình to parry Kang Min-jun’s effort in the 27th minute.
Korea, however, were left stunned three minutes later as Vietnam broke the deadlock with a superbly worked team move.
Nguyen Duc Anh intercepted a counter-attack and fed Quoc Viet, who released Dinh Bac down the left who, in turn, played the ball back to Quoc Viet to squeeze home past rooted Korea Republic keeper Hwang Jae-yun.
Korea returned rejuvenated after the break with substitutes Lee Hyun-yong and Kang Seong-jin joining the action, with the East Asian side going close with Seung-ba forcing Van Bình into making a save in the 53rd minute.
Vietnam continued to live dangerously and conceded in the 69th after Tae-won – who had been on the pitch mere minutes – picked up a loose ball inside the box and curled his shot past a despairing Van Bình.
Korea’s joy was short-lived as Vietnam restored their advantage with Dinh Bac scoring with a spectacular free-kick two minutes later, beating the wall to send the ball into the bottom right corner of the net.
Dinh Bac, however, endured an early end to the game after he was sent off with four minutes of regulation time remaining for a reckless challenge on Lee Chan-ouk.
Korea immediately looked to capitalise on their numerical advantage and just when Vietnam thought they had seen out the danger, the 2020 champions levelled the tie with 15 seconds of the seven minutes of additional time remaining.
Vietnam failed to deal with a cross into their box, allowing Min-ha time and space to control Lee Hyun-yong’s cushioned header to slot the ball into the bottom right corner to force the game into an additional 30 minutes.
Vietnam came under heavy pressure when the tie resumed, with Van Bình denying Min-ha and Tae-won but despite Korea’s efforts, a third goal eluded them as the tie went to penalties.
Both sides converted their first six spot-kicks, with Van Binh then denying Bae Hyun-seo which allowed Nguyen Thanh Nhan to slam home the winner as Vietnam took third place after a mighty battle.
Vietnam head coach Kim Sang-sik lauded his team’s spirited performance.
“It was an extremely difficult and challenging match. I’m proud of how we performed, even when we were down to 10 men,” Kim said. “I want to thank the fans who cheered us on from the stands and back in Vietnam.
“Both teams worked hard to give their best performance. Even with one player less, we gave our all to reach extra time and the penalty shootout.”
“Dinh Bac scored today, and the team was in high spirits. However, there were mistakes, and Dinh Bac was sent off, which made things difficult.
“But I had confidence that we could hold on until the end. Situations like that are always challenging for a head coach to handle.
“Our players were drained but showed strength and character as the game wore on. When we return to Vietnam, the fans will be waiting. It has been a rollercoaster ride for the squad, and I hope they can get some much-needed rest.”
