Two away goals in Hanoi might ordinarily have been welcomed with open arms at this stage of the competition, but Nguyen Quang Hai’s scintillating brace and a late Nguyen Van Quyet penalty left the Turkmenistan champions a deficit to overturn in the return leg.

A veteran of Inter-Zone wins against India’s JSW Bengaluru FC and 4.25 SC of DPR Korea in his side’s charge to last year’s AFC Cup final, Geldiyev said that while losing late in Vietnam was a bitter pill to swallow, Altyn Asuyr remain well-placed to advance on home soil.

The Vietnamese team ran out 3-2 winners in last week’s first leg and will advance to the Inter-Zone Final if they avoid defeat in Turkmenistan, but should the hosts score in Ashgabat then Hanoi will also need to find the back of the net in a tie that remains firmly in the balance. 

While victory at Hang Day Stadium ensured Hanoi start the second leg with the advantage, a tally of 33 shots on goal to seven across the 90 minutes is evidence that they could have taken a much healthier lead to Central Asia.

A thrilling first leg toed and froed before the ASEAN Zonal champions finally secured a 3-2 victory over their Central Asian Zone counterparts following a late Nguyen Van Quyet penalty.

But with two away goals in the bag and home advantage at Kopetdag Stadium, Altyn Asyr will be confident they have what it takes to progress to a second successive Inter-Zone Final.

A thrilling contest saw Murat Yakshiyev stun the Vietnamese support with an early opener at the Hang Day Stadium before Altymyrat Annadurdyyev cancelled out two Nguyen Quang Hai goals by levelling proceedings midway through the second half.

However, with Hanoi pushing for the winner, Orazmuhammedov was adjudged to have brought down Do Hung Dung with three minutes remaining and Nguyen Van Quyet struck the winner from the spot to round off a game gripped with drama.

The midfielder was at his inspirational best at Hang Day Stadium, levelling the score at 1-1 with a sumptuous free-kick after the visitors had taken and early lead through Murat Yakshiyev that stunned the home support.

Quang Hai then produced another moment of magic just after the hour, evading three defenders before curling home with aplomb with a goal that was arguably even better than his first.

Altyn Asyr equalised almost immediately, although Hanoi got the win they will feel their performance deserved when substitute Nguyen Van Quyet finished from the spot with two minutes to play after Do Hung Dung had been upended in the box.

Two superb goals from Nguyen Quang Hai looked to have gone to waste when Altymyrat Annadurdyyev’s equaliser brought the visitors level in the second half, but substitute Van Quyet netted the winning spot-kick in the 88th minute to give the Vietnamese champions a slight edge in the two-legged tie.

The result leaves the tie finely balanced ahead of next Tuesday’s return leg in Ashgabat, with the winners to advance to next month’s Inter-Zone Play-off Final.