Vietnam and Kyrgyzstan are to play their last group stage match on Monday to decide the winners of Group H in the men’s football (soccer) event at the 2014 Asian Games (Asiad), which is taking place from September 19 to October 4 in Incheon, South Korea.

The Vietnamese lead the group of three teams after beating Iran 4-1 last Monday. Kyrgyzstan follow in second place thanks to a 1-1 draw with the Iranians on Thursday.

The event is exclusively intended for under-23 players.

Vietnam have already secured a place in the last-16 round, as the top two point earners advance.

Although Vietnam only need a draw against Kyrgyzstan to top Group H, the men, led by Japanese-born coach Toshiya Miura, aim to win over the Central Asian rivals.

Coach Miura said, “We target to top Group H.

“It will be more difficult if my players enter the field with the goal of earning a tie because 90 minutes is a long time.

“We want to defeat Kyrgyzstan.” During training sessions over the last few days, the Vietnamese players have rehearsed ways to beat their tall rivals by closely marking those who are controlling the ball to prevent them from making high passes into the box.

Vietnam also practiced fast attacks to beat Kyrgyzstan’s defense.

In today’s game, Vietnamese left midfielder Phi Son will likely start to replace Huy Toan, who is injured.

“Kyrgyzstan’s players displayed an effective defense in the 1-1 draw with Iran, so today will be a difficult match for Vietnam,” said Miura. “However, we have our ways to win.”

Coach Eshenov Mirlan of Kyrgyzstan said cautiously, “Vietnam are a strong team. They play fast football and perform good connections.

“The Vietnamese players are also good at scoring.

“We won’t be subjective.

“My players will improve their scoring ability to get the group’s second ticket to the round of 16.”

Kyrgyzstan and Iran hold one point each, but the former have a better goal difference than the latter. It is now 1-1 for Kyrgyzstan and 2-5 for Iran.

The match will be aired live at 3:00 pm (Vietnam time) on Vietnamese TV channel SCTV 15.

Team Vietnam ranks eighth on the medal tally of the 17th Asian Games Incheon 2014, with one gold, two silvers, and four bronzes.

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