Football

Việt Nam forward Phạm Tuấn Hải (right) celebrates his goal in Việt Nam's 1-0 win over Syria in their friendly match on June 20 in Nam Định Province. VNA/VNS Photos

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam won their second friendly match and will move at least one place up in the world ranking of June.

The hosts on June 20 beat Syria 1-0 with a goal from forward Phạm Tuấn Hải early in the second half at the Thiên Trường Stadium in Nam Định Province.

Coach Philippe Troussier and his team were expected to perform better than they did in the 1-0 win over Hong Kong on June 15 in Hải Phòng. Despite a win, their quality was questioned because of poor performances and skills.

Five days later, they did a much better job under strong support of thousands of fans who packed into the 30,000-seat stadium at Thiên Trường.

The game started cagey, with both teams finding their feet in the first 10 minutes. 

It was the visitors who had the first real chance of the game but Yassin Alsamia failed to find the net after a good cross from the left. 

Syria continued to advance but Vietnamese goalkeeper Đặng Văn Lâm was in good form. 

On 21 minutes, forward Nguyễn Công Phượng received the ball on the edge of the box, but his shot flew over the crossbar.

In the 35th minute Phượng had another opportunity to open the scoring but his header missed the mark. 

Defenders Nguyễn Văn Thanh and Đoàn Văn Hậu also had chances but both failed to find the back of the net.

At halftime, Troussier made changes to his frontline bringing on Hải and Lê Tiến Anh.

Hải just needed four minutes to make his mark with a low finish into the corner of the net to give the home side the lead.

With the victory against Syria, who are five places higher than Việt Nam in the FIFA world rankings, the Southeast Asian runner-up will jump from 95th to 94th.

Vietnamese players thanks supporters after their 1-0 win against Syria at the Thiên Trường Stadium on June 20 in Nam Định Province.

Speaking with reporters after the game, Troussier praised his players but admitted their is still much room to improve.

“Our target is always a win," he said.

"But in addition to a win, how we win is also important to us. In this camp, we planned to build up and fluent our playing style. In the last 10 days, players tried their best to complete my requirement.

"Of course, due to short period of training, there were mistakes and misunderstandings, it was normal. I am pleased with the way we won. Việt Nam kept the net safe in two friendlies and scored goals from live ball situations."

The French coach said his players needed more time to prepare for the upcoming World Cup qualification. He hoped that they would have chances to play in the V.League 1 regularly.

Syrian coach Hector Cuper said huge volume of supporters and the festive atmosphere on the stands created a challenge for his team, admitting Việt Nam were the better team and deserved their win.

The Argentinian explained that the loss was also partly due to his short time taking charge of the team which featured 15 new players.

He also said his team was affected by the hot and humid weather. VNS