VN defeat Singapore to win Aya Bank Cup

Lê Công Vinh (white) seen during one of his attempts at goal during the final of Aya Bank Cup yesterday in Yangon, Myanmar. 

Việt Nam started the game in the ascendancy and gradually applied pressure on Singapore’s goal.

Both teams missed chances early on with neither team fully commit into attacking and have their back opened to counter attacks by the other side.

With the scores level at 0-0 after a fiercely contested 90 minutes the game went to extra time.

Vietnamese forward Lê Công Vinh opened the scoring two minutes into extra time after a brilliant through ball from midfielder Văn Quyết set him up to beat the Singaporean goalie.

Seven minutes later Văn Quyết doubled Việt Nam’s lead after the ball deflected off a Singaporean defender in the box from a pass from Công Vinh.

Singapore’s fate was sealed after midfielder Đinh Thanh Trung stuck Viet Nam’s third goal away.

When the referee blew the final whistle, coach Nguyễn Hữu Thắng had won his first international title since becoming national team manager in March this year.

Việt Nam and Singapore have met 17 times in numerous tournaments over the years. Việt Nam currently holds the upper hand with 7 wins, 7 draws and 4 losses. During all the matches, Việt Nam scored 14 goals and conceded 13.

Noteworthy games between the two rivals include the 1998 AFF Cup – called the Tiger Cup at the time – in which Singapore beat Việt Nam to take the championship home with a late winner.

The Vietnamese returned the favour in the 2nd leg game of the semi-final of 2008 AFF Cup with a hard-fought 1-0 victory. Việt Nam went on to win the championship that year.

Star retirement

In a surprise development, 31-year-old Vietnamese forward Lê Công Vinh announced his retirement from football yesterday in an interview with international press during the tournament.

The striker, who won 74 caps, more than any Vietnamese footballer in history, said he was going to call it quits next year.

“I’m going to retire next year. This is the last AFF Cup for me. I’m going to miss playing and I’m going to cry. For now, I just want to play to the best of my ability,” Vinh said. 

Vinh has competed in six AFF Cup events. Vinh’s most memorable moment was when he scored the deciding goal in the 2008 Suzuki Cup final against Thailand to win his country its first AFF championship.

Vinh scored two goals in the semi-final against Hong Kong to see Việt Nam through to the final of Aya Bank Cup this year.