REPORT: VIETNAM 2-0 INDONESIA (SEMI-FINAL, 2ND LEG)
Hanoi: Park Hang-seo’s Vietnam are through to the final of the AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2022 as a Nguyen Tien Linh double gave the hosts a 2-0 win over Indonesia in an intense semi-final second leg at the My Dinh Stadium on Monday.
After a goalless first leg at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, it only took Vietnam three minutes to find the opener through Tien Linh before the striker popped up again to head in a corner early in the second half to wrap up a famous 2-0 victory.
The win sends two-time champions Vietnam to their fourth AFF Championship final and a first since their 2018 triumph against Malaysia, while also giving their Korean head coach Park a chance to bid his farewell to the team with his second Southeast Asian title.
Vietnam had made three changes from the first leg as Bui Tien Dung and Ho Tan Tai came into the defence while Pham Tuan Hai replaced Phan Van Duc in attack. The only change for Indonesia, meanwhile, was Saddil Ramdani replacing Rachmat Irianto in the midfield.
After 90 minutes without a goal during the first leg in Jakarta on Friday, it only took three minutes for Tien Linh to give Vietnam the breakthrough in the return fixture in Hanoi. It was a defence-splitting long ball from captain Do Hung Dung that shredded Shin Tae-yong’s game plan for Indonesia early.
Tien Linh latched onto the ball running between centre-backs Jordi Amat and Rizky Ridho before firing past Indonesia custodian Nadeo Argawinata to give the Golden Star Warriors a crucial early advantage in the second leg.
The chances were few and far between in the first half, but it was not without incidents as things got heated in the middle. Vietnam duo Tien Dung and Van Hau and Indonesia’s Asnawi Mangkualam were cautioned as the half ended with the visitors again getting caught out by a Vietnamese break.
Nguyen Quang Hai got behind the Indonesian defence to go one-on-one with goalkeeper Nadeo before firing his shot wide, but the assistant referee’s raised flag for offside saved the attacker’s blushes during the dying seconds of first period.
The second half began exactly like the first – Tien Linh scoring for Vietnam from a Hung Dung delivery to stun the away side. This time the Binh Duong striker used his head to direct a corner into the goal and give the 2008 and 2018 winners a two-goal cushion, just two minutes into the restart.
Tuan Hai, after winning the corner that led to Vietnam’s second, once again was played through on goal in the 59th minute, only to fire his shot straight at Nadeo. Two minutes later, Quang Hai almost scored a goal of the tournament contender as he volleyed a corner just wide of the goal.
Despite being the team in need of goals, Indonesia were stifled by a well-organised Vietnamese defence and ended the game with zero attempts on target. Quang Hai again went close just before the final whistle as Nadeo got his fingertips to his shot from distance.
Vietnam will now face the winners of the other semi-final where defending champions Thailand are aiming to overturn a 1-0 deficit against Malaysia in the second leg in Bangkok on Tuesday.
