AFC U23 Championship: Vietnamese Coach okay with UAE draw in an intense opener

The Vietnamese team’s head coach is satisfied with one point from their first game against UAE as part of the tournament.

“Before the match, I told my players that it was going to be a genuinely challenging game, and it became true,” Park Hang-seo shared in the post-match conference. “One point is one satisfactory result. You know, it is our first game of one significant tournament, so the pressure is something my football players cannot escape. I desire to thank them for the result.”

Also, he commented on one handball incident related to a UAE defender in the match.

“We trust the modern, dependable video support referee tech. As the referee told it was not one handball after reviewing the case with care on VAR, we believe in the decision,” he said.

He also said that the team needs to enhance their execution of tactics.

“We made use of the offense formation of 3-4-3. We also turned to 5-4-1 for defending. Yet, the transition was not that good. We need extra time to make the operation more seamless. In the next match, we will try to enhance our tactics.”

Nguyen Quang Hai – the Vietnamese captain, also expressed satisfaction with that result.

“We encountered challenges. You know, we played against a competent competitor. Also, it was our first match. One point should be an acceptable result for us. We created some chances as well as being well organized. Hopefully, our team will improve as well as getting better results in the upcoming game,” Hai said.

Meanwhile, Maceij Skorza – UAE head coach, was not so happy with that result.

“I was quite displeased. Our team was playing against a strong opponent, yet they performed well, particularly in the first half. Sad that we could not score a goal and win,” Skorza said.