SEA Games 2011 (17/11): Vietnam beat Laos to win group B

Vietnam came back from a goal down to beat Laos 3-1 at the Lebak Bulus Stadium this afternoon to make sure that they finished the preliminary round of the men’s football event at the top of Group B – ahead of Myanmar.

 

 

At the end of the five matches in the group, both Vietnam and Myanmar are on the same 13 points although the former finished at the top due to better goal difference.

But this evening, Vietnam did not have the best of start when as early as the fourth minute, they fell behind when Keoviengpheth Lithideth picked up a cross from the left before blasting the ball past keeper Tran Buu Ngo to give Laos the surprise lead.

In the seventh minute, Khonekham had the chance to double Laos’ lead but he took too long for the finish while Vietnam replied through Le Van Thanh but his shot narrowly missed the intended target.

In the 16^th minute, the Vietnamese were punished when they lost Nguyen Thanh Long Giang to a red card. But to be fair, Vietnam did not lose hope where they still maintained their composure to press the Laotian defence.

And just before the end of the first half, a one timer from Le Van Thang came off the crossbar for the score to stand at 1-0 to Laos’ advantage.

It was Laos who began stronger in the second half where after picking up a cross from the centre of the park, captain Lamnao Singto shot straight to Buu Ngoc instead.

That failure to take score gave Vietnam the confidence to push forward and in the 62^nd minute, Hoang Dinh Tung gave Vietnam the all-important equalizer when he took advantage of a melee inside the Laos goal to stab the ball home. Seven minutes later, Laos fell further behind when Nguyen Van Quyet beat Laos keeper Sourasay Keosanvandeng for a 2-1 lead.

In the 77^th minute, the frustration was obvious on Laos when they lost Lamnao to a red card for an altercation against Vietnam midfielder Chu Ngoc Anh. A missed penalty some ten minutes later did not prevent Vietnam from scoring their third goal in the game when Van Quyet beat the offside trap to beat Sourasay for the third time.