Olympic Vietnam lose but still have chance to go through
The Vietnamese Olympic team went down 1-0 to their hosts Lebanon in their fifth match of the 2008 Olympic Beijing Games qualifying round on May 16.
19/05/2007 00:00:00
The Vietnamese Olympic team went down 1-0 to their hosts Lebanon in their fifth match of the 2008 Olympic Beijing Games qualifying round on May 16.
The Vietnamese team, hit by injuries and suspension, went down four minutes from kick-off. Lebanon have become the first team in Group C to reach the next qualifying round.
Vietnam, however, still have a good chance to go through as Oman lost their ground in their race with Lebanon and Vietnam, losing 2-1 to Indonesia in an earlier match.
With the defeat of Oman, Vietnam need a point from their June 6 home match against Indonesia to book a berth in the third qualifying round.
Coach Alfred Riedl lined up Anh Duc and Huy Thai to fill the gap left by suspended Minh Chuyen and injured Vu Phong. Huynh Phuc Hiep started the game as a frontman and Phan Thanh Binh replaced Cong Vinh, playing behind Phuc Hiep. Vo Duy Nam, who was reported to have been ruled out for the match in Beirut recovered from his ankle injury to play in the starting XI.
The Vietnamese team went down after four minutes following a counterattack by their Lebanese opponents, who were supported by around 10,000 home fans at the Beirut Municipal stadium.
Akram Mograbi scored the winner for the hosts, which sent them through to the next qualifying round.
Coach Riedl’s men exerted themselves to earn a draw after going 1-0 down early, but failed.
However, it was a good news for them as Indonesia beat Oman 2-1, which means that a draw in Hanoi will send the Vietnamese team through.
The Indonesian Olympic team have earned their first points through goals by Habel Satya and Ahmad Bustomi. Between the two Indonesians’ goals, Abdullah Thoenes pulled a goal back for Oman.
Olympic Vietnam: To Vinh Loi, Doan Viet Cuong, Nguyen Thanh Long Giang, Mai Xuan Hop Nguyen Van Bien, Dong Huy Thai, Vo Duy Nam, Nguyen Anh Duc, Mai Tien Thanh, Phan Thanh Binh and Huynh Phuc Hiep.
Group C, May 16 | |||||||
Team | Pld | W | D | L | GD | Pts | |
1 | Lebanon (Q) | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 6/4 | 12 |
2 | Vietnam | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 6/4 | 9 |
3 | Oman | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 7/6 | 6 |
4 | Indonesia | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3/7 | 3 |
Nhan Dan
