After overwhelming Australia’s U17 Queensland and China’s U17 Hangzhou Greentown, Vietnamese representatives looked comfortable in a quarterfinal clash against their hosts Miura Gakuen – the defending champions of the Japan high-school tournament.

HAGL Arsenal JMG created several scoring chances in the first half but failed to hammer home.

“Iron midfielder” Dong Trieu left the field due to an injury on 20 minutes, and Miura Gakuen took advantage of Vietnam’s 10 men to score two goals within four minutes.

Strike Cong Phuong earned a goal for Vietnam, narrowing the lead before the interval.

In the second half, HAGL Arsenal JMG players produced a pressing tactic in the hope of equalising the score. Their efforts paid off with midfielder Van Thanh slotting home.

After 80 minutes, both teams entered the penalty shootout, and Miura Gakuen outperformed the Vietnamese representatives 4-3, qualifying for the semi-finals.

Later the same day, the Vietnamese representatives ousted another Japanese student team Hosho in a penalty shootout to compete for fifth standing. 

VOV