* Vietnam vs Thailand: Fierce battle in the midfield
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* [Infographic] Vietnam’s Group G fixtures in round two of World Cup 2022 AFC qualifiers
The ASEAN derby is highly anticipated as it sees Thailand, a regional powerhouse who reached the final round of the Asian qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Russia 2018, face Vietnam, a strongly rising football force who have harvested amazing achievements under the Republic of Korean head coach Park Hang-seo, including reaching the quarterfinals at the 2019 Asian Cup, the most recent AFF Cup trophy and a runners-up finish at the 2018 AFC U-23 Championship.
This will be an interesting clash between two talented tacticians, Akira Nishino, who paved the way for Japan to reach the knockout stage of the 2018 World Cup, and Park Hang-seo, who led the RoK team to the 2002 World Cup semifinals as an assistant to Dutch head coach Guus Hiddink.
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Vietnam's Nguyen Quang Hai (L) and Thailand's Chanathip Songkrasin (R) are among the most exciting players to watch during the Thailand-Vietnam clash tonight.
Also of interest will be the battle between two of the region’s most exciting players, with Thailand’s Consadole Sapporo star Chanathip Songkrasin (pictured above, right) going head to head with Nguyen Quang Hai (pictured above, left), the promising Vietnamese midfielder who has built on a superb 2018 AFC U23 Championship campaign to play a key role in Hanoi FC’s journey to this year’s AFC Cup Inter-Zone Final.
The September 5 clash is the first meeting between the national teams of Vietnam and Thailand at FIFA level thus far, and also the first between the two sides in an official FIFA tournament since Park was appointed as the head coach of Vietnam in November 2017.
Adding further intrigue to Thursday’s tie is the recent meeting between the sides at the King’s Cup in Buriram, with a stoppage time goal from Nguyen Anh Duc securing a 1-0 win for Vietnam in the last match before Nishino’s appointment.
The “classic match” between Vietnam and Thailand will take place at 7pm tonight at Thammasat Stadium in Pathum Thani, Thailand.
