Mukhammadali Urinboev (#10) and his teammates were methodical in their approach and secured the victory and first place they wanted. — Photo courtesy of the VFF

Anh Đức

NAGOYA — Việt Nam's national U23 football team have qualified for the 2026 Asian Games men's football quarter-finals, despite losing 0-2 to Uzbekistan in their final Group C game.

Two goals from Mukhammadali Urinboev and Nurlan Ibraimov secured first place for the White Wolves, but Việt Nam still advanced from the group after their main rivals Kuwait lost 1-2 to the Philippines in the remaining group-stage match.

At U23 level, Việt Nam have never beaten Uzbekistan, losing six matches and drawing two. The most famous match between the two sides took place in the 2018 AFC U23 Championship final, when Việt Nam lost 1-2 after extra time.

The gap between the Central Asian side and their Southeast Asian opponents was evident right from the opening minutes, as Uzbekistan found the opening goal very early. In the fifth minute, a fine Uzbekistan move sent captain Urinboev through on goal, and his shot deflected off a Vietnamese defender into the back of Cao Văn Bình's net.

Việt Nam created a few opportunities after conceding, but the strikers up front failed to capitalise on them. The men in red eventually found their way past Samandar Muratbaev in the 15th minute, but Nguyễn Thanh Nhàn's effort was ruled out for offside. One minute later, Nguyễn Ngọc Mỹ's shot from outside the box hit the woodwork, much to the disappointment of the Vietnamese fans.

In the 26th minute, Việt Nam's defence was exposed on the right. Asilbek Jumaev went through on goal, but the striker's shot was too tame and went just wide.

After the break, Uzbekistan continued to pile on the pressure and could have scored at least two more goals in the first 15 minutes if Urinboev had been more precise with his finishing.

His replacement, Ibraimov, did what the Uzbek captain could not, doubling the lead for the men in blue in the 68th minute after going one-on-one with Văn Bình.

Uzbekistan slowed down and substituted key players in the remaining minutes, while Việt Nam failed to find a consolation goal. The match ended 2-0 to Uzbekistan.

"We had some chances in the first half," said coach Đinh Hồng Vinh after the match. "Had we equalised before the break, the game could have been different."

With this result, Việt Nam end the group stage as Group C runners-up and will face either South Korea or Saudi Arabia in the quarter-finals on September 25. — VNS