"I avoided it every day, but it doesn't matter." As expected, I don't need to eat or go to the next round... Vietnam beats Saudi Arabia to advance to the quarterfinals as No. 1 in 'Death Group'

*This content was translated by AI.

"I don't care who I meet in the quarterfinals," said Kim Sang-sik (50), head coach of the Vietnamese national soccer team, who passed the death group first.

Vietnam, led by head coach Kim Sang-sik, beat Saudi Arabia 1-0 in the third Group A match of the "2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Under-23 Asian Cup" held at the Jeddah Prince Abdulla-Al-Faisal Sports City Stadium on the 13th (Korea time).

Manager Kim Sang-sik's replacement technique was the victory. Nguyen Din Park, who entered as a substitute, scored the winning goal in the 19th minute of the second half by shooting where there was no angle after a bold breakthrough.

Vietnam, which won 2-0 in the first round against Jordan and 1-0 in the second round against Kyrgyzstan, advanced to the quarterfinals as No. 1 in the group with three wins (nine points).

Jordan advanced to the quarterfinals with two wins and one loss (six points) after Vietnam. Saudi Arabia, which was hit by Vietnam, failed to advance to the tournament by ranking third in the group with one win and two losses (three points).

Vietnam is able to avoid a showdown with Japan, one of the strongest teams in Asia, thanks to its No. 1 ranking in the group. It will meet the United Arab Emirates (UAE) or Syria, not Japan, the No. 1 player in Group B.

According to the AFC's official channel, manager Kim Sang-sik said after the game, "Today's victory was possible entirely because our players devoted themselves to the team," adding, "Thanks to the hard fighting without giving up for the entire 90 minutes, we were able to get an amazing result of nine points in the group stage. I'm really surprised and proud of the players," he said.

He cited organizational power as the driving force behind his victory. Coach Kim Sang-sik praised the players, saying, "We moved as a 'one team' rather than an individual," adding, "We didn't back down against Saudi Arabia's strong team and showed what we prepared on the field without regret."

With this victory, Vietnam avoided Japan in the quarterfinals. However, coach Kim Sang-sik expressed confidence that he would not care about whoever the opponent was."I don't care who I meet in the quarterfinals," he said. "No matter who the opponent is, we will unite and fight as a 'one team' as we have done so far. I want to show my fans a great game in the quarterfinals as well," he vowed.

Kim Sang-sik's goal is to reach the quarterfinals or higher. "It's not the end of the goal to pass the group league," he said. "We're looking higher. I will also prove the potential of Vietnamese soccer in the tournament," he said with strength.

Asian soccer community is paying keen attention to what kind of scene Kim Sang-sik, who has achieved the No. 1 victory over the survival of the "Death Group," will perform on the quarterfinals stage.

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*This content was translated by AI.