HÀ NỘI — With his best players, coach Nguyễn Hữu Thắng is confident of a win for Việt Nam in today’s 2019 Asian Cup qualification match against Jordan in HCM City.

His beloved midfielder Nguyễn Tuấn Anh has totally recovered from injury and is ready to play. Talented Lương Xuân Trường, who is competing in the South Korean K-League, is allowed to return home for the game. The duo, who have trained and played with each other for nearly a decade, will gather together for the first time after nearly three years in the national-team level. This is expected to strengthen Việt Nam’s central area and strongly support their front line.

“Trường and Anh were trained in the national academy. They made their names with skillful technique and tactical minds. Trường is playing in Asia’s high-level football competition in South Korea. Their return will be a strong push for our team. The pair and some others such as Huy Hùng and Hoàng Thịnh will definitely make a strong midfield and they will assist out forwards very well,” Thắng said in a press conference on Sunday.

Thắng added that he and his team would try their best, playing in defence, and target at least one point against strong Jordan. He said the team was better than Việt Nam in term of physique. However, Việt Nam will be playing on the home turf with the strong support of local fans.

On the other side, coach Abdulla Ahmed Khalfan of Jordan said he wanted to go home with three points. He said Việt Nam is a quality team and Jordan would take time to set up their domination instead of attacking from the beginning.

Expressing his determination, Striker Nguyễn Văn Quyết said, “Everyone knows that Jordan is stronger than Việt Nam. However, we are a united team who train hard and if we strictly follow tactics we could have a positive result.”

Jordan has come to HCM City with many players who are competing in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE. These players would create challenges for the host side. Captain Odai Elsifi said they have made a long journey to Việt Nam and they would try their best to score three points.

Jordan, who are in their Ramadan period, are now on top of Group C after their 7-0 win over Cambodia in the last round. Việt Nam shares the second position with Afghanistan after their 1-1 draw.

The match will be held at 7pm at the Thống Nhất Stadium and will be aired live on ­VTV6 channel. — VNS