The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has announced the identity of the referee team for the important match in Group C of the 2026 U23 Asian qualifiers between U23 Vietnam and U23 Yemen, taking place on September 9 at Viet Tri Stadium (Phu Tho).
The main referee assigned is Mr. Thoriq Munir Alkatiri (36 years old, Indonesia). This is one of the prestigious referees in Southeast Asian football, having operated in Liga 1 Indonesia for many years and was included in the FIFA referee list since 2014.
Mr.katiri has experience honking in the AFC Champions League, AFC Cup and was the main captain in the match where Vietnam beat Laos 3-0 in the group stage of the AFF Cup 2018.
In his career, this referee has officiated 147 matches, issued 510 yellow cards (an average of 3.4 cards/match) and 29 red cards (0.2 cards/match). Therefore, he is considered by experts to be a strict referee.
Mr. Alkatiri's two assistants include Mr. Bangbang Syamsudar (Indonesia) and Mr. Cheon Jin-hee (Korea). The referee is Mr. Choi Hyun-jai (Korea), who was on duty in the match where U23 Vietnam beat U23 Singapore 1-0 on September 6.
After two matches, U23 Vietnam and U23 Yemen both have 6 absolute points. Coach Kim Sang-sik's team temporarily leads thanks to a goal difference (+3 compared to +2). The upcoming confrontation is considered the group "final", deciding the top spot and a place in the 2026 U23 Asian Cup finals.
