This title was determined after the final match between U23 Japan and U23 China. In that match, striker Sato scored 1 goal, contributing to helping U23 Japan win 4-0 and win the championship.
This goal put Sato in the group of 4 players who scored 4 goals at the tournament. The remaining 3 names are Ali Azaireh of U23 Jordan, Leonardo of U23 Lebanon and Nguyen Dinh Bac of U23 Vietnam.
Due to having the same number of goals, the tournament organizers had to consider auxiliary indicators to determine the owner of the Golden Boot title. According to statistics, Nguyen Dinh Bac has 2 assists, equal to Sato.
However, the striker of U23 Vietnam played fewer minutes than the player on the U23 Japan side. This factor helped Dinh Bac rise in the qualifying table and officially win the highest individual title for scorer.
This achievement has a special meaning for Vietnamese football. Before Dinh Bac, no U23 Vietnam player had finished the tournament at the top of the scoring list.
In the 2018 AFC U23 Championship finals, Nguyen Quang Hai once scored 5 goals and left a strong impression, but the top scorer title at that time belonged to Almoez Ali of U23 Qatar with more goals.
At this year's tournament, Dinh Bac maintained a stable scoring performance through the rounds, and also played an important role in the overall playing style of U23 Vietnam. Both scoring goals and contributing to assists gave him an advantage when considering sub-criteria.
The title of U23 Asian Top Scorer 2026 is not only a personal milestone for Nguyen Dinh Bac but also marks the first time Vietnamese youth football has a representative at the top of the scoring list at the continental arena at the U23 level.
