Dinh Bac receives special honor from AFC, surprising statistics from the Vietnam U.23 vs. UAE match.

The goal scored by striker Nguyen Dinh Bac in the victory against host Saudi Arabia on January 12th was selected by the AFC as one of the best goals of the 2026 AFC U-23 Asian Championship. In addition, surprising statistics from the U-23 Vietnam vs. UAE match were also revealed.

Báo Thanh niên•16/01/2026

AFC points out compelling reasons why Vietnam U23 is superior to UAE.

In the list of the most beautiful and popular goals after the group stage of the 2026 AFC U-23 Championship, none of the goals by UAE U-23 players were selected, even though they also scored 3 goals.

While the Vietnam U23 team scored 5 goals, Nguyen Dinh Bac's only goal in the match against the host team Saudi Arabia U23 on January 12th (a 1-0 victory) was selected among the top 8 most beautiful goals.

Dinh Bac's goal in the U.23 Vietnam vs. U.23 Saudi Arabia match, which Vietnam won 1-0 on January 12th, has been voted the most beautiful and favorite goal to date.

Photo: Ted Tran

"Dinh Bac came on in the second half and scored the decisive goal of the match with his agility. He broke into the penalty area before unleashing a powerful shot between goalkeeper Hamed Yousef and the post in the 65th minute, scoring a stunning goal," AFC commented on Dinh Bac's goal.

This goal currently has the highest number of votes on the Asian Football Confederation's website ( the-AFC.com ) at 71.43%, far ahead of goals by Ali Al Azaizeh (Jordan U23) and Behruzjon Karimov (Uzbekistan U23), both with 10.71%, and Yuto Ozeki (Japan U23) and Yaya Dukuly (Australia U23), both with 3.57%...

According to the-AFC.com , the efficiency and technique of the Vietnamese U23 players not only resulted in goals, but also some very beautiful and highly technical goals, such as the one scored by Dinh Bac.

Coach Kim Sang-sik: 'Vietnam U23 has an advantage going into the quarter-final match against UAE U23'

"This offers many prospects for coach Kim Sang-sik and his team in the quarter-final match against UAE (playing at 10:30 PM on January 16). This will be the first time Vietnam U23 and UAE U23 have met in the knockout round of an AFC U23 Championship."

Previously, the two teams met twice in the group stage, with UAE remaining undefeated with one win and one draw. However, both teams have lost their last three matches in the knockout rounds of the U.23 Asian Championship. Therefore, things will be very balanced when the two teams meet in the quarter-finals of this year's tournament," according to the-AFC.com .

Vietnam U23 is considered to have a more effective and technically skilled playing style compared to UAE U23.

Photo: Ted Tran

However, the-AFC.com also points out the reasons why the Vietnam U23 team has a significant advantage over the UAE U23 team. If coach Kim Sang-sik's team continues to perform to their full potential, as they did in their three consecutive group stage victories, they will have a very good chance of advancing to the semi-finals.

"Vietnam U23 have only conceded one goal so far, their lowest tally in the group stage of a U23 Asian Championship. In fact, Vietnam U23's two clean sheets in the group stage (winning 2-0 against Jordan U23 and 1-0 against Saudi Arabia U23) are their best performance in a tournament, compared to the 2018 and 2020 U23 Asian Championships."

Meanwhile, the UAE U23 team only achieved a ball possession rate of approximately 38.8% per match, the second lowest among the teams at the 2026 AFC U23 Championship, after Lebanon (with a rate of 35.9%); this is the lowest rate the UAE U23 team has recorded at an AFC U23 Championship in the four tournaments they have participated in recently.

the-AFC.com also pointed out that Vietnam U23's center-back Nguyen Hieu Minh is the player who has blocked the most shots of any player at this stage of the tournament in the last four U23 Asian Championships (up to 10 shots in the group stage). Only one player has ever blocked so many shots, but that was in an entire U23 Asian Championship final tournament, and that was Husniddin Aliqulov of Uzbekistan in 2020.

For the UAE U23 team, Richard Akonnor won 30 ball challenges in the group stage, the most along with Anas Al Khab of Jordan U23; while only Majid Rashid (34 challenges in 2020) won more ball challenges than the UAE player in a U23 Asian Championship across the last four tournaments.

This factor will help the UAE U23 team defend against the corner kicks that often lead to goals for the Vietnam U23 team in the upcoming quarter-final match, according to the-AFC.com .