Attending the press conference before the match on the afternoon of January 15, the Uruguayan strategist said: "We are very happy to win the right to enter the quarter-finals and will face U23 Vietnam. They are in good form, playing solidly, defending tightly, switching quickly and counter-attacking effectively. However, the whole team is still determined to overcome this challenge to enter the semi-finals".
Compared to U23 Vietnam, U23 UAE has less than one day off before the quarter-final match. Coach Marcelo Broli admitted that this is a noteworthy factor, but affirmed that it does not greatly affect the preparation of the West Asian team. He believes that this issue is "important", but believes that the players are reaching the highest readiness.
Before the question about dealing with fixed situations - the strength of U23 Vietnam, coach Marcelo Broli affirmed that U23 UAE does not build a separate plan for each detail, but prepares comprehensively for all scenarios of the match.
He said: "U23 Vietnam is strong and especially dangerous in corners, but our preparation work is still being carried out seriously as when facing any strong opponent.
In the group stage, U23 UAE ranked second in Group B with a record of winning against U23 Qatar 2-0, losing to U23 Japan 0-3 and drawing with U23 Syria 1-1. Meanwhile, U23 Vietnam showed impressive form when they won all 3 matches in Group A, successively defeating U23 Jordan, U23 Kyrgyzstan and host U23 Saudi Arabia to win the top spot in the group.
Head-to-head history is leaning towards U23 UAE when they are unbeaten after 8 encounters with U23 Vietnam, with 4 wins and 4 draws. Among them are many encounters in official tournaments such as Asiad and U23 Asian Championship. The two most recent encounters in friendly matches in 2022 and 2023, UAE both won with a large score.
However, at the AFC U23 Championship, UAE has never passed the quarter-finals, while U23 Vietnam once set a historical milestone when reaching the final and winning the runner-up position in 2018. The upcoming quarter-final match is therefore considered a competition not only in terms of expertise, but also a test of the bravery of both youth teams.
The quarter-final match between U23 Vietnam and U23 UAE will take place at 10:30 PM on January 16 (Vietnam time).
