Home spectators at Thong Nhat Stadium in Ho Chi Minh City were thrilled on the evening of October 6 as Vietnam thrashed the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) 5-2 in an international friendly match – the first win secured by Vietnam in their last five meetings with the East Asian team.

The guests brought to Vietnam a lineup of stars, including veteran goalkeeper Ri Myung Guk; Pak Kwang Ryong, who once played in the Champions League; and Jong II Gwan, one of the best players in Asia at present.

It was not so surprising that DPRK opened the scoring. After 14 minutes of play, Pak Kwang Ryong converted Kim Kuk Bom’s cross into an opener for the guests with a curler into the far bottom corner of the goal.

The early goal by the visitors ignited the fighting spirit of the host players, enabling them to tie the score thanks to Tuan Anh’s cunning finish in the 32nd minute. It was Tuan Anh’s first goal for the national team so far.

Six minutes into the second half, Vietnam launched a successful attack when Van Toan stole the ball from a DPRK defender and delivered a cross to Vietnamese captain Le Cong Vinh who fired the ball in from close range, making the score 2-1.

Pak Kwang Ryong restored parity for DPRK just one minute later; however, the three eye-catching goals, scored by Van Thanh, Xuan Truong and Thanh Luong in the remainder of the match put the game to bed with an aggregate 5-2 victory for Vietnam.

The resounding win over such a strong team as DPRK is a perfect warm-up for Vietnam ahead of the 2016 AFF Championship, known as the 2016 AFF Suzuki Cup, scheduled to take place from November 19 to December 17 in Myanmar and the Philippines.