Vietnam's under-23 football team defeated Brazil's Santos U23 squad 3-1 in the second match of the Ho Chi Minh City Challenge Cup on September 29 at the Thong Nhat Stadium.

Le Van Thang of Vietnam added two goals to the scoreboard with Vietnamese forward Mac Hong Quan pocketing his own for the match. Santos's only goal belonged to Pedro Silva in the final moments of the match.

The host team appeared bolstered by a 2-1 victory over Galatasaray two days earlier, launching a strong attack on their big-form rivals. Striker Le Van Thang and midfielder Nguyen Van Quyet each scored one goal in the second half with Turkey's substitute responding with a goal for the visiting team.


It is the team's fifth win out of six recent matches in preparation for the SEA Games. The team will represent Vietnam at the 27th Games in December and will attend a 12-day training course in Myanmar early next month. They will compete with the host U23 team before the Games officially kick off.

Returning from Myanmar, the U23s will compete in the Binh Duong Television Cup, an annual international football tournament.-VNA