Vietnam unable to hold back Thailand

Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam went down 1-3 against Thailand on February 15 in the final match of Group C in the Asian Football Confederation Futsal Championship 2016 in Uzbekistan, which also decided who would top the group.

With nine points after three wins Thailand will face Australia, Group D's runner-up. Vietnam will face Japan, the tournament's defending champions, who won Group D's first place after a hard-fought 3-1 victory against Australia, in the quarter-finals of the tournament.

Despite coach Bruno Formoso's comments before the game that Vietnam would trade blows with their arch rivals Thailand, the Vietnamese players quickly lost control of the game and allowed their opponents to dictate the pace.

A brilliant display by the Vietnamese goalkeeper was the only reason the game remained goalless at half time. The Thai players, while displaying superior technique and physical attributes, were also unlucky with their attempts on goal.

Vietnam were forced to play on the counter-attack, and while their defense deserve some praise, their counter-attacks were mostly ineffective.

Thailand resumed their domination after the break, and with just nine minutes left on the clock, Thai forward Suphawut Thueanklang broke the deadlock after the Vietnamese defence allowed him too much space from distance.

Vietnam sprang into life and levelled the game in the 38th minute, a result that would have left them top of the group. However, Suphawut had other ideas and completed his hattrick with two goals in the last two minutes of the game.

Before the match, both teams had already secured a spot in the quarter-finals with Vietnam holding a superior goal difference after their smashing 8-1 victory against Tajikistan last on February 13. Both teams defeated Chinese Taipei and Tajikistan, the two other teams in Group C.-VNA