U.23 Vietnam took turns scoring goals, U.23 Singapore was too difficult to 'guess'

The way coach Kim Sang-sik turned U.23 Vietnam into an unpredictable team created a big challenge for U.23 Singapore's ambition to turn the tables.

Le Viktor's shot hit the crossbar of U.23 Bangladesh

Photo: Minh Tu

U.23 Vietnam has not yet given their all

The Vietnam U23 team opened the 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifying campaign with a 2-0 victory over Bangladesh U23, with the score not reflecting the overwhelming match and the number of opportunities the red-shirted boys created.

Coach Kim Sang-sik surprised everyone when he released an attacking line with only Dinh Bac, a regular starter in the U.23 Southeast Asian tournament, alongside two brand new names, Ngoc My and Thanh Nhan, starting for the first time under Mr. Kim.

But when Ngoc My opened her goal "account" for the U.23 Vietnam team, or when Le Viktor, Quoc Viet, and Van Khang entered the field in the second half and together created nearly ten shooting situations, we saw that Mr. Kim was still right.

As always, the U.23 Vietnam team did not create resounding victories with overwhelming scores, but always knew how to end the match with a winning score and satisfactory results.

Khuat Van Khang threatens the goal of U.23 Bangladesh

Photo: Minh Tu

But indeed, Mr. Kim's way of using people in the U.23 Vietnam team will pose a huge challenge to the opponent in the next match on September 6, U.23 Singapore.

Unlike the opening match which was still kept a mystery, in the second round most of the playing characteristics and strengths and weaknesses of the teams were clearly revealed.

What cards will Mr. Kim prepare against U.23 Singapore?

For example, watching U.23 Singapore play, people noticed that this opponent has a rather monotonous style of play, with attacks that rely on speed, lacking in variation, while the defense is still young and quite unfocused.

At the same time, the spirit of the U.23 Singapore team also improved somewhat, when the equalizer 1-2 and the continuous attacks in the last 10 minutes helped them still have hope for the next match.

If they win against the U.23 Vietnam team, especially with a difference of 2 goals or more, the island nation's players will be able to look forward to a "comeback". For example, if U.23 Yemen loses to U.23 Vietnam, all 3 teams will have the same head-to-head record and will consider the extra goal difference.

The unpredictable Mr. Kim poses a difficult problem for U.23 Singapore.

Photo: Minh Tu

To do that, first of all, the Singapore U.23 team will have to predict how the Vietnam U.23 team will approach the match, especially since the attack line has too many options.

Apart from Dinh Bac who will definitely start, all the strikers including Van Khang, Thanh Nhan, Quoc Viet, Ngoc My, Le Viktor, Van Thuan, Cong Phuong can all start or be on the bench.

How can U.23 Singapore "guess" this when hero Cong Phuong himself started in 2 knockout matches, even scored in the final match to defeat U.23 Indonesia, but did not play a single minute against U.23 Bangladesh.

On the contrary, Ngoc My and Le Viktor both scored against U.23 Bangladesh, leaving a question mark as to whether they deserve to continue to be given the opportunity in the second match against U.23 Singapore or not? Or, is it time for captain Van Khang to start from the beginning?

Remember that among the many strikers on the U.23 Vietnam team's attack line, all have "opened accounts", only Van Thuan has not scored for the U.23 Vietnam team!

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/u23-viet-nam-thay-nhau-ghi-ban-u23-singapore-qua-kho-de-bat-bai-185250904210505956.htm