Vietnam 's Under-23 team came from behind to take their first win at the HCM City International Football Tournament after beating Singapore 2-1 on Sept. 24.

Afio Yunos's opening goal for Singapore only four minutes into the game shocked the crowd, especially home fans who were worried that Vietnam may suffer a second consecutive loss at the tournament.

Captain Yunos converted a perfect corner kick into a goal by jumping higher than any Vietnamese defender, heading the ball into the net.

The goal motivated the Vietnamese side to rally their forces and quickly rearranged the line-up, which launched several rapid attacks.

Striker Tuan Anh levelled the result also from a header after he received a ball passed from the right wing at the 14th minute.

The goal saw Vietnam establish their domination over the play, creating a range of threatening attacks that missed the net.

During the half-time break, Vietnam 's German coach Falko Goetz changed his tactics. Tuan Anh was replaced by Van Quyet while midfielder Le Van Thang, who was asked to play in the lead position, took charge of the attack.

About 15 minutes after the break, Hoang Thien gave Thang the ball in the penalty area and Thang made it 2-1 for Vietnam .

Thang, who was later voted in as best man of the match, missed a chance at the 62nd minute when his shoot went wide by a whisker.

"My strikers played fairly well, creating many opportunities although they suffered from several inaccurate combinations during the final minutes," said Goetz.

"Meanwhile the defenders still showed their weakness, but it was not difficult to understand because we played with different players throughout the [three] matches," the German added. "I think if the defenders receives more support we will not allow anyone to score against us.

"In general, my team didn't play as well as in the previous two matches but I am happy because they played with great determination. This friendly tournament will be useful experience for us ahead of the SEA Games."

With one win, one draw and one loss, Vietnam ranked third out of four teams at the tourney. South Korean's student team took the tournament's trophy while Qatar 's U-17 Aspire Academy took second place./.