The dramatic win against Panama in the second match of Group D of the FIFA Futsal World Cup Lithuania 2021 Qualifiers on September 16 opened an opportunity Vietnam to progress to the round of 16 of this tournament for the second time.
The dramatic win against Panama in the second match of Group D of the FIFA Futsal World Cup Lithuania 2021 Qualifiers on September 16 opened an opportunity Vietnam to progress to the round of 16 of this tournament for the second time.
The first matches of Group D ended without any surprising results. Brazil (second on FIFA Futsal World ranking) and the Czech Republic (16th on FIFA Futsal World ranking) proved their power with wins against Vietnam and Panama. Therefore, Vietnam and Panama had to strive hard for a win so that they can have opportunity to qualify for the next round as one of the best third-placed teams.
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Vietnam started the match on the front foot and scored two goals thanks to Nguyen Minh Tri and Chau Doan Phat. Panana had two goals, equalizing the score before the halftime. In the second half, the two sides played under the pressure of having to win to keep alive their hopes of being among the four best third-placed teams. The match was more interesting with constant attacks from the two teams. Nguyen Van Hieu won the ball in midfield, went through and fired into the net to make it 3-2 for Vietnam. In the last minutes of the match, Panama increased the pressure to find an equalizer; however, Vietnam’s defenders and goalkeeper stopped Panama from scoring goals.
The remaining match of Group D was between Brazil and the Czech Republic on September 17. Brazil continued to show their superiority with a 4-0 win against their opponents. All goals of this match were scored in the second half.
After matchday 5, Brazil are temporarily leading Group D with two wins and six points; the Czech Republic are second with one win, one loss, three points (0 goal difference); Vietnam are on third position with one win, one loss, three points (goal difference -7); Panama are at the bottom with 0 point.
In group A, Kazakhstan and Venezuela progressed to the round of 16 with two wins each; Costa Rica and hosts Lithuania will compete for third place. In Group C, Russia and Portugal guaranteed a spot in the next round.
The win against Panama pushed Vietnam to second place among the four best third-placed teams. They are behind Egypt, who have had three points but been better than Vietnam in goal difference. Vietnam will play their last qualifying match with the Czech Republic on September 19.
An Nhien
Translated by H.N
