U23 Vietnam and U23 Philippines both entered the second match with the pressure to win after a result that was not as expected in the opening match.
Previously, U23 Vietnam drew with U23 Kuwait 1-1, while the Philippines lost to U23 Uzbekistan 1-5. Therefore, the confrontation between the two teams is important for the opportunity to compete for a ticket to the knockout round.
After the first match, the U23 Vietnam defense showed relatively stable organization. Ly Duc can see a reliable option in the center of the defense, alongside Duc Anh and Nguyen Hoang. The midfield also operated well against Kuwait, so there is likely no major disruption.
What needs to be improved lies in the ability to take advantage of opportunities. U23 Vietnam created many attacking situations but the final handling was not accurate enough. Missing opportunities made it impossible for the team to win all 3 points despite having controlled the game well at times.
Against U23 Philippines, finishing efficiency plays an important role as this is a match where Vietnam needs a positive result to be able to hope to win a ticket to the next round.
U23 Philippines also revealed many limitations in the defeat against Uzbekistan. The gap between the lines is quite large, the ability to coordinate and support each other is not good.
Muens receiving a red card at the beginning of the second half also made it more difficult for the Southeast Asian team. However, the Philippines still has players with good physiques and can make a difference in dispute situations.
History is leaning towards U23 Vietnam with 4 wins and 1 draw in 5 encounters. However, most previous matches have taken place with not a large gap.
The match between U23 Vietnam vs U23 Philippines takes place at 1:30 PM today (September 18), live on VTV6.
Live stream link:
//vtvgo. vn/channel/13
