Extremely hot: U23 Vietnam meets “big man” in the quarterfinals of U23 Asia?

Enrolled in the quarter-finals of U23 Asia, U23 Vietnam will face one of the strong opponents in Group D.

2 goals help U23 Vietnam beat Malaysia U23 (source: FPT):

On the evening of June 8, the matches in the last round of Group C ended. U23 Vietnam defeated U23 Malaysia 2-0, while U23 Korea gently overcame Thailand U23 with a score of 1-0. This result officially helped Korea U23 (7 points/3 matches) and U23 Vietnam (5 points/3 matches) to enter the quarterfinals.

Leading the Korean U23 into the quarterfinals, U23 Vietnam will face the top team of the group

According to the results of the draw, U23 Vietnam, as the second team of Group C, will face the first team of Group D in the quarterfinals, taking place at 11pm on June 12 at Lokomotiv Stadium (Tashkent, Uzbekistan).

Currently, the situation of Group D is extremely complicated when the opportunity to continue is divided equally among 3 teams including U23 Saudi Arabia, U23 Japan, U23 UAE. U23 Saudi Arabia and U23 Japan have the same 4 points / 2 matches, but the representative of West Asia is temporarily ranked above because of the difference and will meet U23 Vietnam if this ranking does not change.

In the last match, which took place at 8 pm on June 9, Saudi Arabia U23 faced the 3rd ranked team U23 UAE (3 points / 2 matches), and U23 Japan met U23 Tajikistan.

To preserve the top spot, U23 Saudi Arabia was forced to win. In the case of a draw, the representative of West Asia can completely drop to the second place if Japan U23 defeats U23 Tajikistan, the bottom team and has been eliminated.

Meanwhile, the only way for UAE U23 to squeeze through the narrow door is to beat Saudi Arabia U23. If this happens, they will usurp the top of Group D to face U23 Vietnam if U23 Japan does not win U23 Tajikistan.

On the side of Japan U23, Go Oiwa’s teachers and students lost the right to decide on the top of the table. Now, their task is to win all 3 points against U23 Tajikistan, and wait for U23 Saudi Arabia not to win U23 UAE.

U23 Saudi Arabia and U23 Japan are the two teams that temporarily lead Group D before the last match

In terms of level, all 3 teams are formidable names in the continent. U23 Japan won the 2016 championship, U23 Saudi Arabia twice won the runner-up (2013, 2020), while U23 UAE defeated U23 Vietnam 3-0 in the first closed friendly match. Therefore, no matter which team they meet, coach Gong Oh Kyun’s teachers and students also have to face extremely difficult challenges.

The situation of Group D before the last match

AFC U23 Championship Quarterfinals Schedule