The Vietnamese team was unlucky.

"In this tournament, I think the team was unlucky to play against Japan and Iraq. It was a tough group. But in the end, I think the team left the tournament with a good image, a positive one ," coach Philippe Troussier shared in the press conference after the match between the Vietnam national team and the Iraq national team.

The Vietnamese team entered their final match with high determination despite being certain to be eliminated after two losses. Coach Troussier's players performed well in the first half and took a 1-0 lead against Iraq thanks to a goal from Bui Hoang Viet Anh. However, the Vietnamese team suffered a setback when Khuat Van Khang was sent off.

Vietnam 2-3 India.

In the second half, the Vietnamese team played with ten men and couldn't hold their ground against their opponents. They conceded two goals before equalizing thanks to Quang Hai. Right in the last minute of injury time, Iraq scored the winning goal from a penalty kick, making the final score 3-2. Coach Troussier didn't criticize the players, as they showed good spirit and played well when they had a full squad.

"I asked the players to fight their hardest for the national colors and continue to pursue my philosophy. Today, they did just that. I am pleased because the whole team wasn't expected to do much when facing Iraq. I am satisfied with the players' performance and effort," said the French coach.

In this match, Van Khang received two yellow cards in the first 45 minutes and was sent off. Coach Troussier respected the referees' decision. According to him, Van Khang was only trying to win the ball and had no malicious intent. With only 10 players on the field, it was very difficult for Tuan Anh and his teammates to make a difference. The red card was what Coach Troussier regretted most.

The Vietnamese team nearly earned a point against Iraq.

" From the start, we knew this would be a difficult match. Theoretically, the Iraqi team was also stronger than us. In my tactics, I also wanted to cause them a lot of trouble, but unfortunately, the final result was not successful ," Coach Troussier commented.

"Even though we were out of contention, our players maintained the same spirit as when we played against Indonesia. We scored two goals and defended relentlessly for an hour with only 10 men on the field. The players really prepared very seriously for this match. Unfortunately, we lost in the final minutes, a goal that the team had to pay for due to our mistakes."

The Vietnamese team played very proactively in the first half. In the second half, it was much more difficult for us due to being shorthanded, but we still maintained our organization and discipline in defense. Furthermore, the team always proactively sought out and exploited even the smallest attacking opportunities to score more goals."