With their superior skills and physical strength, the Russian players completely dominated the first half. In the first 20 minutes, the Russian side failed to create any significant threats to the Vietnamese goal. Meanwhile, Hoang Duc and his Vietnamese teammates played quite confidently, generating two clear-cut shots, but they were unable to capitalize on these opportunities with effective shots on goal.

After the first 20 minutes, the Russian team increased the tempo and took advantage of their physical strength to open the scoring. Goalkeeper Dang Van Lam produced an excellent save against a low header from Piniaev Sergei. Moments later, Musaev crossed the ball close to the goal, allowing Kuziaev Daler to make a header that beat Van Lam, giving the Russian side a 1-0 lead in the 24th minute.

In the 41st minute, the Russian team missed a scoring chance when goalie Van Lam was completely beaten. However, two consecutive shots from Krivtsov Nikita and Piniaev Sergei were both cleared off the line by Nguyen Thanh Chung. Before the end of the first half, Piniaev Sergei once again threatened the Vietnamese goal with a header that narrowly missed the post.

In the early minutes of the second half, coach Kim Sang-sik’s team played better, applying various attacking strategies. In the 52nd minute, the Vietnamese team executed a surprising free-kick combination, with Hung Dung passing the ball to Phan Tuan Tai, who took a volley shot, but the ball went wide of the post.

Nine minutes later, the Russian side scored their second goal from a pass back by Vu Van Thanh, but Van Lam missed the ball. They extended their lead in the 77th minute, with Musaev Tamerlan’s easy goal.

A minute later, Bui Vi Hao took the first on-target shot for the Vietnamese team in the match, but it was not challenging enough to beat the Russian goalkeeper. In the 82nd minute, Vi Hao again delivered a good cross to the far post, but Tuan Hai, from a tight angle, saw his shot hit the crossbar.

Vietnam lost 0-3 to Russia in the end.

Russia will encounter Thailand on September 7 while Vietnam will play Thailand three days later.

The tripartite friendly tournament is taking place during the FIFA Days and is expected to attract a large number of spectators as it is crucial for the Vietnam national team in the lead up to the 2024 ASEAN Championship (AFF Cup) later this year.

VOV