2018 AFC U-19 Championship: Jordan upset favorites Vietnam; Australia crash South Korea’s hopes holding them for a draw

Two remarkable games with unexpected results took place at the Patriot Candrabhaga Stadium in Bekasi, Indonesia. Jordan upset the title aspirations of Vietnam after stunning them with a late goal to snatch precious points to stay ahead on top of Group C. The second match saw a spirited Australian team holding twelve times Champions South Korea to a 1-1 draw.

Group C: Jordan defeated Vietnam 2-1

(JOR - Mohammad Atieh 29’, Mohammad Alzu'bi 89’; VIE - Nham Manh Dung 21')

Jordanian coach Jamal Ahmad Abu Abed would have been livid at the number of scoring opportunities that their players had missed. Garnering three points from their opening encounter would have comforted the coach and his players as Jamal would look out to iron out the flaws before their crucial match against South Korea.

Employing a 4-3-3 formation, which progressed into an attacking 2-1-3-1-3. Shoqi Al-Quz'a and Bassam Daldoom took the role of wingbacks, while Nizar Al-Rashdan took control of the defensive midfield. Mohammad Aburiziq played the role of an attacking midfielder to supply passes to their three strikers. They had 18 attempts on the goal of which six were on target.

Vietnam who played well in the initial stages took the early lead when a cross from Lee Van Xuan from a set-piece situation was headed back into the center of the box by Dang Van Toi. Nham Manh Dung rose above to unleash a superb header which found the top left corner of the goal.

Jordan restored parity through Mohammad Atieh’s right footed shot in the 29th minute. Following a set piece situation, Omar Al-Zebdieh’s strike got blocked by Dung Quang Nho. But the ball fell to an unmarked Atieh, who shot past Eli Nie to tie the scores.

Vietnam made 14 interceptions and seven blocks to thwart the Jordanian strikers. Having started with a 4-4-2 formation, it meandered to a 3-3-3-1 combination with the forward Nguyen Huu Thang surprisingly holding the midfield role for most parts of the game. Defender Dang Van Toi pressed on to the left wing position.

Mohammad Alzu'bi's right-footed volley from close range from Mohammad Aburiziq’s delivery secured the win for Jordan in the dying moments of the game. Jordanian fullbacks Yazan Mahmoud Abdelaal and Hadi Omar Ahmed did a spectacular job in holding the Vietnam forwards at bay with a 92% success rate on tackles won. Jordan’s physical presence was on full display as they won 72% of the aerial duels.

Ramy Najjarine's stunning strike salvaged a draw for Australia

Group C: South Korea drew Australia 1-1

(KOR - Jeon Se-Jin 52'; AUS - Ramy Najjarine 89’)

Korean coach Jung-Yong Chung employed the 3-4-3 formation, which ended up becoming a 4-2-3-1 formation with midfielders Kim Jae-Sung dropping to right-back and Choi Jun operating a defensive midfield position leaving Cho Yung-Wok as the lone striker.

Australia had an outstanding chance in the first half when Apostolos Stametelopoulos was clear in the front after getting past Kim Hyun-Woo. He had the goalie to beat when Lee Jae-Ik came up with a fantastic sliding tackle inside the box to deny the Australian.

Getting behind Australia's Walter Scott, Kim Jae-Sung’s right-footed shot from a tight angle forced a save from James Delianov.

Korea surprisingly won 64% off the aerial duels and had an incredible 15 shots on goal of which ten were on target.

A probing cross from Yim Jae-Hyeok was tapped in by Jeon Se-Jin after he caught the Australian defense napping by getting in front of Tate Russell to make it 1-0 in the 50th minute.

Australia stuck to the 4-1-4-1 formation until the end, to wind up with seven shots of which one found the target.

Um Won-Sang's 67th-minute effort struck the woodwork to deny a second for the Koreans.

Australian substitute Ramy Najjarine side-stepped past Choi Jun and came up with a left-footed beauty in the 89th minute to salvage a 1-1 draw.