Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnamesemidfielder Nguyen Quang Hai’s goal ‘Rainbow in the Snow’ in the final betweenVietnam and Uzbekistan in the AFC U23 Championship 2018 has been chosen as the mosticonic goal of the tournament.
Afterseven days of vote through the Asian Football Confederation (AFC)website, Hai’s stunning free kick received 1,159,847 votes or 79.1 percent ofthe total ballots.
Itwas a long way ahead of Iran's Mahdi Torabi strike which came second inthe list with 298,037 votes.
Asthe AFC U23 Championship Thailand 2020 kicks off in just a few weeks, theAFC picked eight of the finest goals in the competition since the firstedition in Oman in 2014 giving fans the chance to pick the best.
According tothe AFC, while Uzbekistan won the tournament, Hai captured the imagination andhis goal in the final – one of five superb goals by the midfielder during thetournament – provided one of the most iconic moments the competition has everseen.
Earlier, theAFC also chose five memorable matches from the previous editions of the tournamentincluding two matches of Vietnam.
The firstwas the match with Iraq in the quarter-finals in which Vietnam won 5-3 onpenalties after the two sides tied 3-3 during 120 minutes.
The win sawmillions of people take to the streets in Hanoi, Da Nang and HCM City. Vietnam'sincredible quarter-final victory over Iraq captured the hearts of the ASEANnation.
Theremaining match was the historic final between Vietnam and Uzbekistan.
According tothe AFC, a match that had everything including the iconic 'Rainbow in the Snow'goal that went down in Vietnamese footballing folklore. It was the end of theremarkable campaign for the ASEAN country, one which will live long in thehearts of their supporters, and it was a deserving finale to conclude amemorable tournament.
Vietnam’sU23 team are in HCM City for training before leaving for the event which is setto take place from January 8 to 26 next year. Vietnam are in Group D with theDemocratic People’s Republic of Korea, Jordan and the UAE./.
VNA