Traveling to Singapore's stadium to compete in the first leg of the ASEAN Cup 2024 semi-final on the evening of December 26, the Vietnamese team encountered many difficulties against the home team.
It was thanks to two goals in the second half's extra time by striker duo Nguyen Tien Linh and Nguyen Xuan Son that the Vietnamese team was able to win 2-0 overall.
After the match, coach Kim Sang-sik praised the team's fighting spirit. However, he remained cautious ahead of the second leg of the semi-final despite his team's 2-0 advantage in the first leg.
He said in a post-match press conference: "I really thank the players, because the team won 2-0. Thank the fans for their endless support. Honestly, the players have not fully adapted to the weather and the field. The first half of the Vietnam team was very difficult.
In the second half, the team changed their tactics and played very well in the final minutes. However, the players tried their best to focus on the match, so we were able to win. Although we won 2-0, we still have to be careful and continue to prepare for the second leg."
In this match, striker Nguyen Xuan Son had a rather sensitive goal denied situation in the 84th minute. Afterwards, Mr. Kim Sang-sik was also given a yellow card by the referee for his strong reactions when Son's goal was denied.
When asked about this situation, coach Kim Sang-sik shared: "I am not the one who has the right to make judgments, so there is not much to say. Although I am sorry for Xuan Son's missed goal, I think we need to respect the referee's decision. And even though the referee's decisions were not as expected, the players still kept their determination to the end to get good results."
"Both teams faced many difficulties in this match. Now the Vietnamese team is preparing for the return match. No matter what problems there are, I will prepare carefully. The players will try not to be careless in the return match," Mr. Kim added.
Coach Kim Sang-sik also did not forget to praise the Vietnamese team's defense and goalkeeper Dinh Trieu in particular.
"I am satisfied with the defense when the Vietnamese team did not concede any goals. Singapore is very strong in counter-attacks and long balls. We will try to stop the opponent and prepare for the next matches.
Goalkeeper Dinh Trieu is improving day by day, not conceding goals, not making mistakes. Although he made a mistake in the first match, I think he did a good job today. Thank you to goalkeeper coach Lee Woon Jae for working well with the goalkeepers," Mr. Kim emphasized.
