Nhan Gia Hưng (13) and teammates celebrating Việt Nam's opening goal. — Photo courtesy of VFF

Anh Đức

BANGKOK — The Việt Nam national futsal team claimed their first three points in the 2024 AFC Futsal Asian Cup with a hard-earned 1-0 victory against China on Friday.

Việt Nam's solitary goal was scored by Nhan Gia Hưng through a ten-metre penalty, after China committed their sixth foul.

The victory comes after a slow start to the tournament, as Việt Nam drew 1-1 against Myanmar in their first match on Wednesday. Coach Diego Giustozzi and his men needed three points against China to keep their qualification hopes alive.

Just like the match against Myanmar, Việt Nam had the upper hand right from the get-go, piling on enormous pressure against China. Just nineteen seconds into the game, Từ Minh Quang fired a vicious shot that went just wide of the post.

Multiple chances come the way of Minh Quang and teammates, but they could not capitalise. It took a dead ball situation to grant Việt Nam's opening goal, as China was fouled out and Việt Nam was given a ten-metre penalty.

From the spot, Gia Hưng converted with a powerful shot towards the lower right corner of the net, bringing Việt Nam the 1-0 lead in the 11th minute.

However, defensive woes, which cost Việt Nam the win against Myanmar, continued to haunt them. A stray pass from Chu Văn Tiến in the 14th minute put a Chinese player through on goal, however, Hồ Văn Ý spectacularly covered Tiến's blunder with a great one-on-one save.

With nothing to lose, as a defeat means elimination, China switched to a power play strategy (where an outfield player plays as a goalkeeper) near the end of the first half, looking for the equaliser. The strategy was somewhat effective, as Văn Ý was forced to make a double save in the 16th minute.

China continued their power play in the second half whenever they gain possession, and Việt Nam cleverly exploited gaps in the Chinese defence. Đức Hòa and Thịnh Phát all had clear cut chances but unfortunately could not score.

In the 35th minute, a tough tackle from Minh Quang was challenged by the Chinese team, and the referee went to the Video System (VS) monitor to check the replay for a possible red card. After review, the foul was deemed not worthy of a sending-off.

Two minutes later, Việt Nam also used their VS challenge after Văn Ý was supposedly elbowed by a Chinese player. This challenge, however, was also unsuccessful.

China pushed on in the last five minutes of the match, and with seconds to go, Shen Simen fired a powerful shot that rattled Văn Ý's crossbar. The match ended right after that and the Vietnamese breathed a sigh of relief.

With this victory, Việt Nam now have four points in Group A, and will face hosts Thailand on Sunday in a crucial make-or-break match. — VNS