U22 Vietnam make dream start to 29th SEA Games
Doan Van Hau scored twice and produced an assist as Vietnam defeated Timor Leste 4-0 in their Group B opener at the 29th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in…
The Hanoi FC defender put Vietnam ahead after only eight minutes and paved the way for striker Ha Duc Chinh to double the advantage 12 minutes later. Hau made the score 3-0 for the red-colour team four minutes prior to halftime, before favourite striker Nguyen Cong Phuong sealed the fourth goal for Vietnam in the 72nd minute.
Vietnamese players started the match comfortably, with their confidence strongly boosted thanks to an absolutely overwhelming head-to-head record over Timor Leste. In their last four meetings at major tournaments at the U22 and U23 levels, Timor conceded 16 goals and failed to score a single goal against Vietnam.
Most recently, Vietnam beat Timor Leste with four unanswered goals in their Group I opener at the 2018 AFC U-23 Championship qualifiers in Ho Chi Minh City on July 19.
For that reason, it is not surprising as Vietnam enjoyed an early lead thanks to Van Hau’s close-range strike eight minutes from the first whistle.
After the opener, coach Nguyen Huu Thang’s players took control of the match, and it was only a matter of time before the second goal went to the Vietnamese side. In the 20th minute, Van Hau’s left-wing cross was caught by Duc Chinh’s head to beat Timor keeper Pereira.
It took just another 21 minutes for Vietnam to make it 3-0, with Hau producing an eye-catching goal from long range towards the far corner.
The score should have been 5-0 in favour of Vietnam before halftime if strikes by Tuan Anh (15’) and Duc Chinh (39’) had not been denied by the post and cross-bar.
In the second half, Vietnam brought the pressure on the Timor Leste side and created a number of opportunities to widen the gap, but the most anticipated striker Cong Phuong failed to make use of them to net his first goal at the 29th SEA Games.
It was not until the 72nd minute that the scoring pressure was relieved from Vietnam’s no. 10 jersey player, as he converted a convenient assist from Van Toan into the fourth and last goal for Vietnam during the match.
With the resounding 4-0 victory, Vietnam is temporarily leading Group B with three points, two points ahead of Thailand and Indonesia, who held each other to a 1-1 draw in another group matchup the same day.
Next up for Vietnam will be a match against Cambodia on August 17.
