Vietnam were yesterday drawn in a group of strong opponents in the second qualification round of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia and at the same time of the 2019 Asian Cup in the United Arab Emirates.

In Group F, Vietnam will compete with Iraq, Thailand, Indonesia, and Taiwan under a double round robin format from June 11, 2015 to March 29, 2016.

Besides Taiwan considered the underdogs, Vietnam will face challenges from equally-ranked rivals Thailand and Indonesia and favorites Iraq, who were the 2007 Asian Cup champions.

In the group stage of the AFF Suzuki Cup last year, Vietnam were held to a 2-2 draw by Indonesia.

Drawing for 2018 FIFA World Cup and 2019 Asian Cup

The drawing event was organized in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia yesterday to pool 40 teams who advanced from the first qualification round last month, into eight groups for the second round.

Eight group winners and four best runners-up based on their goal difference and head-to-head results will advance to the final qualifying round of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

The 12 teams, who will certainly book their places in the finals of the 2019 Asian Cup, will go on to fight for four or five tickets to Russia in 2018.

For the Asian Cup campaign, the same 12 teams will join the 12 squads that follow them in the second qualification round to contend in the finals of the 2019 tournament in the United Arab Emirates.

The 2019 Asian Cup marks the first time the final round has 24 teams, instead of 12 as before.

The drawing results for the second qualification round of the 2018 FIFA World Cup and 2019 Asian Cup:

Group A: UAE, Saudi Arabia, Palestine, Timor Leste, Malaysia
Group B: Australia, Jordan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Bangladesh
Group C: China, Qatar, the Maldives, Bhutan, Hong Kong
Group D: Iran, Oman, India, Turkmenistan, Guam
Group E: Japan, Syria, Afghanistan, Singapore, Cambodia
Group F: Iraq, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Chinese Taipei
Group G: South Korea, Kuwait, Lebanon, Myanmar, Laos
Group H: Uzbekistan, Bahrain, the Philippines, North Korea, Yemen

Pham Thanh Luong of Ha Noi yesterday beat his teammate Nguyen Van Quyet and Le Cong Vinh of Binh Duong to win the Golden Ball Award for the best Vietnamese footballer of the year.

In a ceremony held at HCM City’s Ben Thanh Theatre, Luong, 27, took the prize for the third time, having won the prize in 2009 and 2011.

In a vote participated in by 129 sports officials, football experts, coaches, referees and journalists, Luong won 180 points.

“I feel very happy at the moment after a year of hard competition. There is only one Golden Ball Award, and all players are contenders. I’m just the lucky man tonight,” Luong said at the ceremony.

“It’s very special to win this for the third time. I just dream of giving my all playing football, bringing excitement to millions of fans in Viet Nam,” he said.

Nguyen Van Quyet of Ha Noi took the Silver Ball prize, while Le Cong Vinh of Becamex Binh Duong received the Bronze Ball.

Vinh, who won the Golden Ball Prize three times in 2004, 2006 and 2007, failed to win the top prize for the best Vietnamese footballer of the year for the fourth time.

Midfielder Nguyen Thi Tuyet Dung, of Ha Nam won the women’s Golden Ball.

“It’s great for me. I want to share the prize with my family, teammates and coaches of Phong Phu Ha Nam and the national team,” Dung said.

Two-time Golden Ball winner Dang Thi Kieu Trinh of HCM City won the Silver Ball and Nguyen Thi Minh Nguyet of Ha Noi took the Bronze Ball.

Nguyen Tuan Anh of Hoang Anh Gia Lai and striker Le Hoai Luong of HCM City were awarded the best young men’s and women’s player titles.

Senegalese striker Abass Cheikh Dieng of Becamex Binh Duong was chosen the best foreign player.

The African player helped the southern team win the National Football Championship, V-League, in 2014. He scored 16 goals to rank third in the list of top scorers.

Source VNS

Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) will face Song Lam Nghe An (SLNA) without their key players in the ninth round of Toyota V.League 1 at Vinh Stadium tomorrow, April 12.

Warming up: Hoang Anh Gia Lai players seen during a training session. They will meet Song Lam Nghe An tomorrow. — Photo news.zing.vn

Tran Huu Dong Trieu, Nguyen Tuan Anh, Nguyen Phong Hong Duy and Hoang Thanh Tung, who are key members of the national U19 team, are all sidelined with injuries.

In addition, the club have cancelled midfielder Cosmin Goia’s contract following a string of poor performances.

HAGL’s coach Guillaume Graechen said even though the team would be without some best players, they still play attacking football and go for the win.

He said in football, one player’s misfortune is a chance for another player to shine. He believes his players would perform well.

Graechen, who suffers a leg injury, added that wining at Vinh Stadium wasn’t an easy task, but HAGL would try the best to get at least one point.

In preparation for the match, HAGL have been training in Nha Trang and played friendlies matches with Phu Yen, Quang Nam and Sanna Khanh Hoa.

At present, SLNA are sixth in the league with 14 points, while HAGL are 10th with seven points.

“HAGL are strong rivals with young and skillful athletes. The V.League 1 has been on a break for nearly two months, but we have trained regularly. Now we are ready to meet them,” said coach Ngo Quang Truong.

At Chi Lang Stadium, Sanna Khanh Hoa will play SHB Da Nang tomorrow.

“Khanh Hoa have several injured players but they will recover in time for the match. In general, we are in good form,” said Khanh Hoa coach Vo Dinh Tan.

Tan said his team want to take three points from the match with Da Nang to create momentum for their next matches with Ha Noi T&T, Quang Ninh Coal and Becamex Binh Duong.

In other fixtures, Dong Thap will face Thanh Hoa at Dong Thap Stadium, Can Tho will play Dong Tam Long An at Can Tho Stadium and Dong Nai will play Binh Duong at Dong Nai Stadium.

National U23 team coach Toshiya Miura will watch the match between Quang Ninh and Quang Nam at Cam Pha Stadium to assess potential players for the 28th Southeast Asian Games in Singapore in June.

Source: VNS