Speaking at the pre-match press conference held on the afternoon of January 19, coach Antonio Puche said: "I am happy to be present at the pre-match press conference again. U23 China is going through a great tournament, having great experiences.
Mr. Puche admitted that his team having less than one day off than U23 Vietnam could have a certain impact, but emphasized that this is not a decisive factor. "The players will recover well and are ready," he said.
The journey to the semi-finals of the two teams has a clear difference. U23 Vietnam played convincingly when they won all 4 matches, scored 8 goals and conceded 3 times.
Meanwhile, U23 China only had one victory, which was a 1-0 victory over U23 Australia in the group stage. This team also became the team with the fewest goals scored to reach the AFC U23 Championship semi-finals, with only 1 goal after 4 matches.
However, U23 China still made a historic mark when they first participated in the semi-finals of the tournament. Previously, Chinese youth football stopped right from the group stage in the AFC U23 Championships.
Speaking about the goal of the home team, coach Puche affirmed: "U23 China always maintains a competitive attitude in each match. Being in the U23 Asian semi-finals is already the biggest dream of U23 China. Already in this round, the whole team will fight their best for a ticket to play in the final.
In the quarterfinals, U23 China actively played defensively against U23 Uzbekistan, accepting to let the opponent launch up to 28 shots, including 8 on target. The resilience of the defense and the excellent form of goalkeeper Li Hao helped this team drag the match into a penalty shootout and win the right to advance.
Assessing the opponent in the semi-finals, coach Antonio Puche respects U23 Vietnam. "U23 Vietnam is a very well-organized team. With this team's tactics, it is very difficult for opponents to organize attacks.
U23 Vietnam also has a reasonable strategy to switch to attacking. Of course, we understand them very well. My players know U23 Vietnam well. Tomorrow's match will be difficult".
The last time the two teams met was at the Panda Cup 2025 friendly tournament in November 2025, when U23 Vietnam won 1-0 thanks to a goal from defender Pham Minh Phuc.
The semi-final match between U23 Vietnam and U23 China will take place at 10:30 PM tomorrow (January 20).
