AFF Cup semi-finals: Vietnam victory over Indonesia grabs Asian headlines

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) website showcased Vietnam's fantastic win in an article titled "Tien Linh brace sends Vietnam into final".

With the first leg of the semi-final stage ending in a goalless stalemate, two-time winners Vietnam took the lead through a brilliant volley from Nguyen Tien Linh before the Becamex Binh Duong forward went on to head home another at the start of the second half to seal victory at the My Dinh National Stadium, according to the AFC.

Vietnam attacked straight from the whilst in the second half, with Indonesia's hopes of a second half comeback being extinguished in the 47th minute when they conceded a corner.

The AFC commented that Vietnam could have scored a third on the hour mark, but Nguyen Quang Hai saw his acrobatic volley sail just past the right post of the Indonesian goal.

It ultimately didn't matter in the end as Vietnam comfortably advanced to the final in coach Park Hang-seo's final tournament in charge, it added. 

Thailand's Siam Sport praises Vietnamese footballers' performances at AFF Cup 2022.

Thailand's Siam Sport said that the Vietnamese team lead by coach Park are fast approaching their goal of winning the AFF Cup for the third time.

The championship title will represent a meaningful gift by the Vietnamese team before saying goodbye to the departing Korean coach, a Thai reporter noted.

At AFF Cup 2022's website

Elsewhere, the website of the AFF Cup 2022 wrote, "Park Hang-seo's Vietnam are through to the final of the AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2022 as a Nguyen Tien Linh double gave the hosts a 2-0 win over Indonesia in an intense semi-final second leg at the My Dinh Stadium on January 9."

The win sends two-time champions Vietnam to their fourth AFF Championship final and their first since their 2018 triumph against Malaysia, while also giving their Korean head coach a chance to bid his farewell to the team by potentially winning a second Southeast Asian title, the website noted.

After 90 minutes without a goal during the first leg played in Jakarta on January 6, it only took three minutes for Tien Linh to give Vietnam a breakthrough goal in the return fixture in Hanoi. It was a defence-splitting long ball from captain Do Hung Dung that shredded Shin Tae-yong's game plan for Indonesia early on, the article pointed out.

Vietnam will now face the winners of the other semi-final game, with defending champions Thailand aiming to overturn a 1-0 loss against Malaysia in the second leg in Bangkok on January 10.

Vietnam will play on their home turf at My Dinh National Stadium in the first leg of the final on January 13, and will play an away match three days later.

(Source: VOV)