Hai is the first Vietnamese representative in the Player of the Round poll after his outstanding performance in the team’s match against Cambodia.

“Playing in a more advanced role behind the strikers, Vietnam’s wonderfully gifted Nguyen Quang Hai excelled in his much freer attacking role and has doubled his tally for the AFF Suzuki Cup 2018 campaign so far,” wrote an article on the AFF Suzuki Cup website.

“The 21-year-old star continues to live up to the hype surrounding him and, if he maintains this form, then he could lead Vietnam all the way to a second AFF Suzuki Cup title, ending a decade-long gap since their maiden championship,” it added.

Also in the list are Supachai Jaided of Thailand and Mohamadou Sumareh of Malaysia. However, as of 3:30pm of November 27, Hai topped the list with 2,508 votes, or 87.63 percent.

Meanwhile, goals scored by Hai and Duc in the 3-0 victory against Cambodia have been nominated for the Goal of the Round title. Duc is leading the list with 90.18 percent of votes, outpacing Hai in second position with 8.23 percent.

Vietnam crushed Cambodia 3-0 in their final match in Group A of the tournament. With this result, Vietnam topped the group with 10 points (three victories and a draw). It is especially of note that the team kept a total clean sheet during the group stage. 

On December 2, Vietnam will play the Philippines.

The AFF Suzuki Cup 2018 is taking place from November 8 to December 15 with 26 matches among 10 teams. 

In the history of the tournament, Vietnam won the championship just once in 2008. With the leadership of coach Park Hang-seo and the current squad, both Vietnamese and Korean football fans are hopeful the former country’s team will take the trophy for the second time after 10 years in the waiting. –VNA