The group stage of the U21 National Football Tournament ended on Tuesday with defending champions Da Nang and Quang Ninh advancing to the semifinals.

Quang Ninh beat 2006 champions Tien Giang 1-0 to top Group B while Da Nang finished second to be claim its place in the last four of the 13^th Thanh Nien-sponsored football event despite a 0-3 defeat to HAGL at the Go Dau Stadium.

Tien Giang started the match needing to win to advance while a draw would see their rivals through.

So they played attacking football from the very beginning as Quang Ninh employed a defensive strategy.

Halfway through the second half, Tien Giang showed signs of exhaustion and Quang Ninh stepped up to score the only goal of the match, sending the Mekong Delta representative home.

In the other quarterfinal match, Da Nang, who looked to avoid facing Group A’s second-placed hosts Binh Duong in the semis, lost 0-3 to HAGL, who had already been disqualified.

Da Nang will take on Group A’s top-placed T&T Hanoi on Thursday and Quang Ninh will fight Binh Duong on Friday for berths in the final.

After the final on September 27, the best players of the tournament will be picked to represent Vietnam against Iran, China, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia in the third U21 International Football Tournament in October, also in Binh Duong.

The international tournament is also sponsored by Thanh Nien.

Source: SGGP