Defeating "dark horse” Jordan in a dramatic penalty shootout, following a 1-1 draw after 120 minutes in their Round of 16 clash on Sunday, coach Park Hang-seo's side once again created a miracle. After a 2018 with multiple successes, the Asian Cup 2019 continues to witness the Vietnamese team extend their excellent performance to go far beyond predictions prior to the ongoing UAE campaign.
Sharing with the media after winning tickets to the last eight, Xuan Truong said: “I feel very honoured to be with the team in the Asian Cup quarterfinals. There are no words to describe the feelings of all the members of the squad at this time.”
Exactly one year ago, Xuan Truong and his teammates also beat strong rivals Iraq U23 on a penalty shootout at the AFC U23 Championship to progress to semifinals of the China competition. The Tuyen Quang native also successfully net in his 11m shot in that shootout match. However, talking about the recent nail-biting penalty with Jordan, Xuan Truong only modestly admitted that he was lucky.
“The penalty shootout with Jordan was a much bigger challenge because this is a tournament on a very high level compared to last year’s U23 tourney. Fortunately, I was successful on the spot.”
Sharing more about the preparation of the national squad for the upcoming quarter-final match, the Hoang Anh Gia Lai's midfielder said that the coaching staff and the team’s doctors are doing very well to restore fitness for the players. The team have also been professional in catering to resting.
After the match with Jordan, the team spent the whole of Monday resting. Xuan Truong said that the players are in a high mood now, but they are also ready to focus back on training to prepare the best for the quarterfinals.
"The whole team hopes that in the upcoming match, we will try to play a better game and thus continue to bring unforgettable emotions to Vietnamese fans", he affirmed the squad’s determination.
Late Tuesday, Xuan Truong and his teammates were back to training to prepare for their quarterfinal encounter with continental powerhouse Japan on Thursday.
