Conceding a goal on the penalty spot, Vietnam team bid farewell to the U23 Asian finals

Entering the quarter-final match against U23 Iraq with a relaxed mentality, coach Hoang Anh Tuan's team entered the match confidently and had their first shot in the 4th minute, when Van Truong opened the ball for Khuat Van Khang to run up the left wing and shoot from a distance. Unfortunately, the kick of the 'left winger' wearing the number 18 shirt of U23 Vietnam sent the ball wide of the goal.

In the 16th minute, Van Khang's indecisive clearance created an opportunity for U23 Iraq midfielder Ali Al Mosawe to launch a left-footed shot, forcing captain goalkeeper Quan Van Chuan to push the ball away to save the goal.

With good technical and physical foundation, the U23 Iraq players were the ones who "dominated" the game with an outstanding ball control rate (64%), however, coach Hoang Anh Tuan's students still showed their efforts when completing the task of putting pressure in the midfield area relatively well.

In the final minutes of the first half, Van Truong and Van Tung had chances to "open the scoring" for U23 Vietnam, however, the shots of this striker duo were not accurate. The first half ended with a 0-0 draw.

Entering the second half, U23 Iraq continued to be the team that took the initiative when pushing up the attacking formation and continuously pressing, however, the defense of U23 Vietnam led by central defender Luong Duy Cuong still maintained solidity.

The turning point of the match came in the 59th minute: midfielder wearing number 10, Nihad Mohammed, fell in the penalty area after a collision with goalkeeper Quan Van Chuan.

After about 5 minutes of checking VAR technology, referee Hyung-Jin Ko decided to give U23 Iraq a penalty and gave a yellow card to the goalkeeper of U23 Vietnam.

At the penalty spot, Quan Van Chuan guessed the direction of the ball correctly, but striker Ali Jasim's low shot was too dangerous. The score was opened 1-0 for U23 Iraq in the 64th minute.

Conceding an unexpected goal, coach Hoang Anh Tuan brought Hong Phuc, Duc Phu, Nguyen Hoang and Minh Quang onto the field to increase the attacking power of U23 Vietnam. However, against an opponent with the advantage of physical strength and physique like U23 Iraq, U23 Vietnam's chances mainly came from shots outside the penalty area by Khuat Van Khang or Ngoc Thang.

In the extra minutes, defender Nguyen Manh Hung stepped on Ali Jasim's shin. After consulting VAR technology, the Korean referee gave a red card and expelled the defender of U23 Vietnam.

With only 10 players left on the field, coach Hoang Anh Tuan's team was "powerless" in their quest to find an equalizer and accepted to say goodbye to the tournament after a 0-1 loss to U23 Iraq.