The game started at Wibawa Mukti Stadium in West Java, Indonesia, at 4 p.m. with Vietnamese team in red and Pakistan in white. Head coach Park Hang-seo sent two main attackers, Nguyen Van Quyet and Nguyen Anh Duc.
Vietnam scored first in the 21th minute through midfielder Nguyen Quang Hai, thanks to a beautiful assist from Nguyen Cong Phuong. The goal came after several attacks that were foiled by the Pakistani defense.
Nguyen Quang Hai reacts after scoring the first goal for Vietnam. |
Pakistan players launched a major attack in the 33rd minute, but failed to find the net.
Attacker Nguyen Van Quyet, wearing jersey number 10, scored the second goal for Vietnam in the 41st minute.
In the 45th minute, Vietnam missed a penalty, with Cong Phuong’s strike bouncing off the crossbar.
Pakistan's Riaz Muhammad was cautioned by the referee at the 53rd minute.
A foul that earned Riaz Muhammad a yellow card. |
Vietnam's Phuong, number 9, missed another penalty, saved by the goalkeeper, at minute 69.
Phuong scored Vietnam's third goal at the 72nd minute.
Nguyen Cong Phuong (C) celebrates after scoring Vietnam's third goal. |
In the 79th minute, Ali Mohsin of Pakistan received the second yellow card of the game.
The Vietnamese U23 team practices before the game. |
Vietnam will compete in Group D along with Japan, Pakistan and Nepal. Its second match will be against Nepal on August 16. Asian Games is the world's second biggest multi-sports event, this year drawing 16,000 competitors and officials from 45 nations descending on Jakarta and Palembang.
Park selected the squad team based on performance at an exhibition tournament with guest players from Oman, Palestine and Uzbekistan in Hanoi earlier this month. The team is basically the one that won Vietnam second place at the Asian Football Confederation U23 Championship in China last January.
VIETNAM 3-0 PAKISTAN VIE - Nguyen Cong Phuong, 72' VIE - Long shot by Nguyen Van Quyet, 41' VIE - Short passing by Nguyen Quang Hai, 21' |
Vietnam | Team Stats | Pakistan |
29 | Shots | 4 |
19 | Shots on goal | 0 |
58% | Possession | 42% |
8 | Corners | 1 |
11 | Fouls | 13 |
0 | Yellow cards | 2 |
0 | Red cards | 0 |
Photos by Lam Thoa, Duc Dong