2018 AFC U-19 Championship: Vietnam's campaign ends after defeat to Australia

Vietnam became the first team to be eliminated from the 2018 AFC Under-19 Championship after suffering a 1-2 defeat to Australia at the Patriot Chandrabhaga Stadium on Monday.

Group C: Australia defeat Vietnam 2-1

(AUS: Angus Thurgate 37’, Ben Folami 76’; VIE: Le Van Nam 85’)

Both the teams started without their captains, Sebastien Pasquali and Dang Van Toi, with Australia rueing the loss of their suspended central defender Con Ouzoundis.

Australia modified their 4-3-3 formation at the start to a 5-2-3 style with midfielder Angus Thurgate switching to a more defensive role. Australia reeled off 14 shots, of which seven found the target and four had missed the mark.

In a keenly contested duel with nothing to separate between the two teams, Australia enjoyed a slight edge with 50% shooting accuracy compared to Vietnam’s 33%. Angus Thurgate was particularly impressive winning six tackles to keep the Vietnamese forwards at bay while Ben Folami wrecked havoc on the left wing with six successful dribbles to his name.

Both sides enjoyed exploiting the attacks from the wings with Vietnam’s Dung Quang Nho being particularly impressive, supplying three key passes to the forwards. Y Eli Nie, the Vietnam custodian, was kept busy with five saves in the entire game.

Apostolos Stamatelopoulos came close with an early long-range effort following a poor clearance from Nguyen Hung Thien Duc which grazed past the side post away from a diving Eli Nie.

Angus Thurgate found the back of the net with a right footed shot under the legs of Eli Nie to put Australia ahead. The Vietnamese defense left Angus unmarked, allowing him to slot the ball in before being denied by Bui Hoang Viet Anh tackle.

Vietnam coach Hoang Anh Tuan immediately changed from a 4-2-3-1 to an attacking 4-2-4 formation in search of goals. Their lone striker had support from his midfielders, but still, they managed a total of six shots of which two were on target and two were off the mark.

Ben Folami of Australia plies his trade in Ipswich Town

Ben Folami found acres of space to come up with a craftily-placed left-footed shot to the bottom right corner from Nathaniel Atkinson's pass.

Substitute Le Van Nam reduced the deficit by getting past James Delaniov to pull one back for the Golden Dragons.

The Socceroos would require nothing less than a draw against Jordan to qualify for the knock-outs, while Vietnam will look to finish well against twelve-time champions Korea Republic in their next game.