(Live football) - The Vietnam national team is targeting a consecutive win in their replay against Nepal during the 2027 Asian Cup qualifying round.
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The 3-1 win in the first leg, despite some flaws, was significant for Vietnam’s national team. While awaiting AFC’s decision on Malaysia’s illegal naturalization case, coach Kim Sang Sik’s squad must focus on their own task: securing wins against weaker opponents like Nepal and Laos.
Of course, the recent 3-1 victory over Nepal left fans somewhat unsatisfied. Even with a numerical advantage, Vietnam’s play was quite stagnant. The offense and finishing ability still need much improvement despite Tiến Linh scoring. The defense also must reduce individual errors.
Fans are also eager to see coach Kim Sang Sik give more chances to some young talents from Vietnam’s U23 team. Hiểu Minh, Xuân Bắc, and Phi Hoàng are still waiting for their official debut with the national team. Naturally, Nepal is not a strong enough opponent to require Vietnam to be overly cautious.
Vietnam showed dominance over Nepal during the 90 minutes at Binh Duong Stadium, especially in midfield possession and pressure from the two fullbacks. However, supporters likely want to see a commanding match, a convincing win without conceding any goals against Nepal.
Emphasizing the goal of a more convincing win, coach Kim Sang Sik stated the team has prepared thoroughly in attack: “In the previous game, we had 20 chances but only scored 3 goals. I hope Tiến Linh and the attacking players will make better use of their opportunities, staying calm and accurate in finishing. The team’s objective is to score more goals and, more importantly, keep a clean sheet.”
Vietnam:Trung Kiên, Văn Vĩ, Quang Vinh, Duy Mạnh, Hiểu Minh, Phạm Xuân Mạnh, Hoàng Đức, Thành Long, Hai Long, Đình Bắc, Tiến Linh
Nepal:Kiran Chemjong, Anjan Bista, Bimal Pandey, Rohit Chand, Pujan Uperkoti, Arik Bista, Ayush Ghalan, Suman Lama, Tej Tamang, Manish Dangi, Jung Karki