Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Taipei: Vietnam kept their hopes of qualifying for the AFC Futsal Championship quarter-finals alive after a 2-1 win over Bahrain at the Xinzhuang Stadium on Saturday.
Vietnam had suffered a last second 2-1 defeat to Malaysia on Matchday One, while Bahrain had settled for a 2-2 draw with hosts Chinese Taipei.
Goals from Nguyen Dac Huy and Phung Trong Luan in the first half proved to be enough to secure three points for Vietnam in the Group A tie and a fighting chance to reach the knockout phase.
Vietnam kept to the same intensity displayed in their opening match against Malaysia, knowing defeat meant they had no chance of progressing, and Bahrain used that to their advantage.
When in possession, the West Asians would pull Vietnam into their half before launching long range crosses, hoping to catch their opponents by surprise but Miguel Rodrigo’s charges were quick on their feet and reacted fast to smother the Bahrain plans.
Ali Saleh and captain Mohamed Al Sandi were Bahrain’s dangermen as they had several close attempts on goal which either struck the framework or were pushed away by goalkeeper Ngo Dinh Thuan.
Against the run of play, Dac Huy opened the scoring for Vietnam in the 18th minute, courtesy of Co Tri Kiet’s pass which Dac Huy steered the ball into the bottom right corner.
www.the-afc.com/en/more/photo/vietnam-bahrain2.html
