Viet Nam  yesterday lost 7-6 to host Indonesia in a penalty shootout at the final match of the Southeast Asian U-19 Football Championship.

Speaking after the match, Indonesian coach Sjafri admitted to Tuoi Tre that the Vietnamese team performed better, but it was his team that scored more goals.

Besides having the support of their fans, the host Indonesian players played more violent football, which was aided by the ‘ignorance’ of Thai referee Sivakorn.

The two sides went to a shootout after no goals were scored during 120 minutes of regulation play at Gelora Delta Sidoarjo Stadium. 35,000 Indonesia fans burst into noisy cheers after the ninth round of the shootout.

The Indonesians kept on kicking at the heels and the back of the knees of the Vietnamese players while fighting for the ball. Two Vietnamese players, Trung Tinh and Hong Duy, were injured and carried off the field in the 10^th and 80^th minutes.

In the 84^th minute, Juti of Indonesia made a high kick on Thanh Tung, but the referee saw it as neutral and let the game continue.

In the 118^th minute, a Vietnamese player intentionally kicked the ball out of play so an injury could be attended to, but the host team failed to play fair and did not return the ball to the visiting team.

Coach Graechen Guilllaume of Viet Nam  said, “The Thai referee ignored many mistakes by the Indonesians. But that’s football and we can accept it.”

“I am proud of what my players performed,” he added.

Next month, the Vietnamese U-19 team will fly to Malaysia to take part in the Asian U-19 Football Championship group F, consisting of Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Australia.

The two sides went to a shootout after no goals were scored during 120 minutes of regulation play at Gelora Delta Sidoarjo Stadium. 35,000 Indonesia fans burst into noisy cheers after the ninth round of the shootout.

(Source: tuoitrenews)