AFC: Vietnam U23 is a big challenge for China U23.

VHO - Ahead of the 2026 AFC U23 Asian Championship semi-finals, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) website published an article stating that Vietnam U23 will be a major challenge for China U23 in the semi-finals.

Coach Kim Sang-sik and his team are enjoying an impressive run with a streak of four consecutive wins, including three consecutive victories in the group stage against U23 Jordan (2-0), U23 Kyrgyzstan (2-1), U23 Saudi Arabia (1-0), and most recently a thrilling 3-2 win against U23 UAE in the quarter-finals.

Vietnam U23 is the only team in the semi-finals to have won all their matches (excluding penalty shootouts).

These results have shown a Vietnamese U23 team that has matured significantly in both technical skills and competitive spirit. The team also demonstrated a clear balance between disciplined play, high organization, and the ability to adapt flexibly to each opponent.

Meanwhile, China's U23 team advanced to the semi-finals with a 4-2 penalty shootout victory over Uzbekistan's U23 team in the quarter-finals.

Including all four matches at the 2026 AFC U23 Asian Championship, China's U23 team has only scored one goal and is the only team in the semi-finals that hasn't conceded a goal.

Commenting on the match between Vietnam U23 and China U23, the AFC highly praised the historic journey of the China U23 team in reaching the semi-finals for the first time after being eliminated in the group stage five times.

China U23 (right) reaches the semi-finals of the U23 Asian Championship for the first time.

“China U23 made history by reaching the semi-finals, having never advanced beyond the group stage in their previous five appearances. Coach Antonio Puche’s team showed incredible resilience in defense, holding Uzbekistan to a 0-0 draw in the quarter-finals and performing at their best in the penalty shootout, winning 4-2,” AFC commented.

The AFC emphasized that Vietnam U23 will be a major challenge for China U23. A dramatic 3-2 victory against UAE U23 in the quarter-finals helped coach Kim Sang-sik's team reach the semi-finals for the second time and they are now aiming to surpass their 2018 runner-up finish.

"Vietnam will be another big challenge for the East Asian team, as coach Kim Sang-sik's players are also aiming to make history," AFC commented.

The semi-final match between Vietnam U23 and China U23 will take place at 10:30 PM on January 20th (Vietnam time). Prior to that, at 6:30 PM, the first semi-final between Japan U23 and South Korea U23 will be played.

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/the-thao/afc-u23-viet-nam-la-thu-thach-lon-cho-u23-trung-quoc-198255.html