Hanoi FC claim first win at AFC Champions League

The victory was a nice outcome to Hanoi who lost the first three games of AFC Champions League (ACL), along with two V. League games that put them at the bottom of the table. Their form was so poor that two coaches were sacked before the youth team's coach Dinh The Nam took over.

It seemed like Hanoi could succumb to another ACL defeat at My Dinh National Stadium on Tuesday night when Wuhan opened the scoring early. Wei Shihao made a through pass to Abdul-Aziz Yakubu, who back heeled it to He Chao for a simple finish in the 10th minute.

Wuhan would have doubled the score in 44th minute if Yakubu had not missed a sitter in front of the empty net.

On the other side, Hanoi players were out of sync, and only able to create two relevant chances in the first half.

In the second half, Hanoi subbed in midfielders Nguyen Hai Long and Do Hung Dung to improve their firepower. However, the situation did not get better.

Then Pham Tuan Hai proved to be Hanoi's hero in the 71st minute when he scored the equalizer with an impressive header despite being marked.

Pham Tuan Hai (L) celebrates his winning goal for Hanoi FC against Wuhan Three Towns at AFC Champions League, Nov. 8, 2023. Photo by Trung Nhu

Two minutes later, Hanoi got another advantage when Wei was sent off for taking his knee into the face of Pham Xuan Manh.

Despite playing with more men, Hanoi did not score until the last minute. It was Hai again with a series of moves to remove two defenders before finishing with sophistication to score the winner for Hanoi.

The win helped Hanoi get their first three points in ACL. Despite placing last in group J, Hanoi’s chance to move on still remains as they are only one point behind Wuhan and Japan’s Urawa Red Diamonds.

The club will play South Korea’s Pohang Steelers on Nov. 29 and Urawa on Dec. 6.