After three matches in Group A, Singapore is temporarily leading with 7 points after 3 matches. Indonesia is second with 6 points but has only played 2 matches, while Vietnam has 4 points after 2 matches. Cambodia and Timor-Leste have not yet won any points.
The draw at My Dinh Stadium put a lot of pressure on coach Kim Sang-sik's team before the away match against Indonesia in the next match taking place on August 3.
This is considered a decisive match for the Vietnamese team. If they win against Indonesia, the Vietnamese team will have 7 points after three matches and regain the right to self-determination. At that time, just defeating Cambodia in the final round, coach Kim Sang-sik's team will win a ticket to the semi-finals regardless of the result of the match between Indonesia and Singapore.
Conversely, if they only get a draw against Indonesia, the Vietnamese team will have to wait for the result of the confrontation between Indonesia and Singapore in the final round. At that time, the necessary condition is that the Vietnamese team must defeat Cambodia, and at the same time hope that the Indonesia-Singapore match will determine the winner and loser to avoid the three-team draw scenario.
In case of losing to Indonesia, Vietnam's chances of going further will become very slim. Indonesia will have 9 points and officially win a ticket to the semi-finals, while Singapore still has one match to play. If Singapore only needs to win 1 more point against Indonesia in the final round, the Vietnamese team will no longer have a chance to compete for a ticket to the next round.
According to the ASEAN Cup 2026 regulations, when teams have equal points, direct head-to-head record will be the first criterion used to determine the ranking. Therefore, the 0-0 draw with Singapore puts the Vietnamese team at a disadvantage if a scenario where many teams have equal points appears.
The next matches of Group A will take place on August 3 with two matches Indonesia vs Vietnam and Timor-Leste vs Cambodia. The result of the match between Vietnam and Indonesia is likely to decide the outcome of the race to win tickets to the semi-finals.
