Echoes of Vietnam National Team 2

VOV.VN - The performance against Japan helped the Vietnamese team temporarily relieve pressure and receive encouragement before heading to the key match in the 2023 Asian Cup group stage against Indonesia.

Surprise and reality

Dinh Bac’s “unbelievable” header and Tuan Hai’s shot into an empty net were the two most sublime moments of the Vietnam team in the match against Japan. Those two goals came in the half hour when the Vietnam team played their best in the opening match of the 2023 Asian Cup.

The way Vietnam scored and the performance surprised fans. In the context of coach Philippe Troussier facing a wave of criticism and the Japanese team having a 10-match winning streak, the prediction that Vietnam would lose heavily was the main trend before the match.

Dinh Bac deservedly had the most outstanding image of the Vietnamese team in this match. The 19-year-old striker played confidently, overwhelming defender Yukinari Sugawara, earning a free kick that led to Tuan Hai's goal to increase the score to 2-1 in the 33rd minute and flying to head the ball past goalkeeper Zion Suzuki to equalize 1-1 in the 16th minute.

Vietnam national football team caused a surprise when they took the lead against Japan national football team 2-1.

Dinh Bac played impressively in his first Asian Cup appearance. (Photo: Reuters)

However, Dinh Bac could not last the whole match and left the field in the 64th minute. The Vietnamese team could not maintain their high level for the full 90 minutes. Even coach Philippe Troussier and his team could not maintain the surprising result until the end of the first half.

Japan's four goals in the 11th, 45th, 45+4th and 85th minutes all came after a series of attacks that caused chaos in the Vietnamese defense. Takumi Minamino (double), Keito Nakamura and Ayase Ueda defeated goalkeeper Nguyen Filip with unstoppable shots.

In fact, the Vietnamese team tried their best to control the match's tempo by both controlling the ball (41%) and defending in large numbers, but the difference in class still made Nguyen Filip and his teammates run out of breath when the Japanese team was determined to accelerate.

The Japanese team scored after a series of coordinated moves that caused chaos in the Vietnamese team's defense. (Photo: Reuters)

Vietnam national team could not create a complete surprise against Japan national team. (Photo: Reuters)

Coach Hajime Moriyasu and the inspiration for the pivotal match

Before leading the Japanese national team to a "shock" at the 2022 World Cup and being the strongest candidate for the 2023 Asian Cup championship, coach Hajime Moriyasu was on the verge of being fired. Mr. Moriyasu burst into tears while singing the national anthem before the match between the Japanese national team and the Australian national team in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers on October 14, 2021. That was a match in which he was at risk of losing his job if he did not win.

At that time, the Japanese team's playing style was not as good as it is now and their performance was extremely disappointing. However, coach Hajime Moriyasu "escaped" when the Japanese team beat the Australian team 2-1 and after that, the teachers and students together made continuous progress.

Coach Moriyasu is winning the hearts of Japanese fans. (Photo: Reuters)

Coach Moriyasu and Coach Troussier chat after the final whistle. (Photo: Reuters)

Coach Philippe Troussier and the Vietnam national team are also looking forward to a decisive match. The Vietnam national team needs to win against Indonesia in the next match to open up the opportunity to pass the group stage of the Asian Cup 2023 and create a memorable milestone with the French strategist.

Coach Philippe Troussier once admitted that 80% of comments on social media were not in his favor. That relationship has become warmer after the Vietnam national team's match against Japan. If Mr. Troussier now surfs social media, he will see more positive comments.

That warmth is a mental boost for the Vietnam team and coach Philippe Troussier personally, before entering the key match in the group stage of the 2023 Asian Cup. However, the compliments will be drowned by the wave of criticism if the Vietnam team does not win on January 19.

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/the-thao-quoc-te/du-am-dt-viet-nam-2-4-dt-nhat-ban-niem-tin-cho-tran-dau-then-chot/182829.htm