AFF Cup: Vietnam national squad arrive in Myanmar in preparation for next group match

Departing from Hanoi’s Noi Bai International Airport at 5pm Saturday evening, after nearly two hours of travel plus time to complete entry procedures, the national team arrived in Yangon at 6:45 pm (local time) to the welcome of Vietnamese football supporters in Myanmar.

In order to create the most convenient conditions for coach Park Hang-seo’s side, five days ago, the Vietnam Football Federation sent staff to Yangon to carry out all preparations for accommodation and training for the team ahead of their arrival.

The squad will have their first training session in Myanmar at 4 pm (local time) this afternoon, before encountering the hosts on Tuesday night next week. A win would grant Park and his players a ticket to the semis with one game in hand.

Earlier, the team earned a comfortable 2-0 win over strong rivals Malaysia in their second Group A match at Hanoi’s My Dinh stadium on November 16. The convincing win and fair-play by the Vietnamese players earned them VND1.1 billion in bonus, of which the VFF granted VND600 million and the T&T Group presented VND500 million.

Vietnamese players won fans’ hearts with a convincing victory and fair-play against Malaysia. (Photo: VFF)

After the win, coach Park expressed his satisfaction with the three important points earned at home against Malaysians, especially with the positive performance of his players during the 90 minutes on the pitch.

"Today I am very happy and pleased about how Vietnam played and won. Especially, we overcame the biggest obstacle in Group A. In addition, the team has not suffered any injuries. That gives me the most satisfaction," Park said in a press brief after the match.

The second consecutive win opens a great opportunity for Vietnam to progress to the semi-finals. However, the 59-year-old coach said that this is not the time to think of the top or second place in the group. The team will continue to prepare for the match with Myanmar.

Malaysia’s coach Tan Cheng Hoe said his team were better than two previous victories against Laos and Cambodia, but there were some unfortunate situations that cost them two conceded goals to Vietnam.

He admitted that Malaysia had problems in transferring from defense to offense, and their passing was not exactly accurate. However, Tan said he was still satisfied with his players’ performance and the loss would be a lesson for them.