Cong Vinh in raptures after historic win

Vietnam striker Le Cong Vinh has hailed the AFC Asian Cup co-hosts” historic 2-0 victory over Gulf Cup champions United Arab Emirates and insists Alfred Riedl”s side are now in a prime position to secure a place in the quarter-finals.

Song Lam Nghe An striker Cong Vinh struck the crucial second goal with 17 minute remaining as last season”s V-League MVP expertly lobbed advancing UAE goalkeeper Majed Naser after perfectly timing his run to collect Nguyen Vu Phong”s lofted pass.

Huynh Quang Thanh had earlier stunned the UAE and sent a packed My Dinh National Stadium into raptures three minutes after the hour with a powerful close range finish from Nguyen Minh Phuong”s chipped pass.

“It was a very interesting match and it will go down in the history of Vietnamese football,” said Cong Vinh, who is one of 12 players from the under-23 Olympic side named in Riedl”s squad.

“This is the biggest result in the history of Vietnamese football. I was delighted when I scored the second goal.”

Cong Vinh, who has a prolific scoring rate for club and country, is seen as the best Vietnamese player since veteran Le Huynh Duc hung up his boots and made his mark with three goals in the Asian Olympic Qualifiers earlier this year.

Vietnam can now look forward to Thursday”s meeting with Asian Games gold medal winners Qatar and the Group B finale against three-time champions Japan next Monday with realistic thoughts of reaching the last eight of Asia”s premier football tournament.

“We now have an excellent chance of progressing to the next round after starting the tournament with a win,” Cong Vinh added.

“The team is very confident and we believe we can make it to the quarter-finals. It is now an open group and Vietnam have an excellent chance.

“Vietnam are the smallest team in the group, but after this victory the image Qatar and Japan have of our team will change. The fans were very important; they made the team feel stronger.”

Cong Vinh hailed the contribution of Austrian coach Riedl, who is in his third spell in charge of Vietnam.

“The coach has had a great affect on the team, not only is he the coach he is also a friend,” he said.

Vietnam underwent a light training session at Hanoi Stadium on Monday morning before sitting down to watch the evening”s match between Qatar and Japan to plot a route to another historic triumph.

“Qatar are the Asian Games champions; they are a very strong team,” he added. “We will watch the game against Japan tonight and try to find the best and most appropriate solution.”

Cong Vinh and his Vietnam team-mates were also celebrating after the match as AFC Asian Cup sponsors Samsung, who also sponsor the Vietnamese team, handed the team a cheque for US$50,000 to mark the achievement.

The Vietnamese Football Association also added US$18,750 to the pot, while the Vietnamese Sports Commission and BITV also contributed US$3,100 each.

Cong Vinh, fellow goalscorer Huynh Quang Thanh and goalkeeper Hong Son Duong were also handed cheques for US$2,000 each from The Hoa Sen Corporation following their starring roles in the victory.