Vietnam beat Jordan on penalties to reach Asian Cup quarters

Tuesday, 22 January 2019 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

DUBAI (Reuters): Vietnam’s young guns beat Jordan 4-2 on penalties to reach the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup after the match finished 1-1 following extra time at the Al Maktoum Stadium on Sunday.

Jordan’s Baha Seif hit the bar and Vietnam goalkeeper Dang Van Lam saved Ahmad Saleh’s effort in the shootout to leave substitute Bui Tien Dung to convert his spot kick and send his side through to a meeting with Japan or Saudi Arabia on Thursday.

The match had finished deadlocked after 120 minutes with Jordan’s Baha Abdelrahman opening the scoring from an indirect free kick in the first half and Nguyen Cong Phuong equalising with a volley six minutes after the break.

Southeast Asian champions Vietnam poured forward in search of a winner but, for all their possession, neat interplay and stylish touches, they could not quite carve out a goal.

Jordan had beaten reigning champions Australia and Syria to win their group, while Park Hang-seo’s youthful Vietnam team had squeaked through to the last 16 by virtue of having a superior disciplinary record to Lebanon.

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