Two Vietnamese footballers enter AFC Cup top scorer ranking

With 19 goals in four different tournaments for Hanoi FC, Nguyen Van Quyet peaked at number two on the list. The club’s current captain is also the highest goal scorer for Hanoi, having netted 107 goals after 225 appearances for the club.

Last year, Quyet’s impressive performance contributed greatly to the success of Hanoi when it reached the AFC Cup interzone final round for the first time.

Behind Quyet at number seven is the naturalized Brazilian striker Huynh Kesley Alves. He scored 15 goals in AFC Cup while playing for Becamex Binh Duong. Alves gained Vietnamese citizenship in 2009 and earned his first cap for the Vietnam national football team in the same year. The 38-year-old striker has scored a total of 143 goals in 269 appearances throughout his career.

Huynh Kesley Alves (R) plays for HCMC FC at the 2018 V. League 1. Photo by VnExpress/Duc Dong.

Singapore dominated the list with five players, including striker Aleksandar Duric with 27 goals. Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia have one player each on the list.

Started in 2004, AFC Cup has become Asia’s second biggest club level competition, below the AFC Champions League.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the tournament this year, featuring two Vietnamese clubs HCMC FC and Than Quang Ninh, has been postponed indefinitely. AFC will closely monitor the situation before deciding when to resume fixtures.