Fergana, Uzbekistan: Vietnam struck in the 90th minute to edge Qatar 2-1 in Group B of the AFC U20 Asian Cup™ Uzbekistan 2023 on Saturday.
Despite dominating proceedings for the majority of the match, Qatar paid the price dearly for the chances they squandered, especially in the opening forty five minutes.
The last gasp victory, achieved after Qatar had drawn level in the 84th minute, means Vietnam will advance to the quarter-finals if they avoid defeat to Islamic Republic of Iran in their final tie on Tuesday.
Vietnam came into the tie on a high after their 1-0 win against Australia, while Qatar were in search of their first victory after going down by a similar margin against Iran on Matchday One.
Qatar had early glimpses at goal with Mubarak Shanan coming close in the fourth minute, while Mubarak Shanan saw his header saved two minutes later.
Vietnam played in patches but had a chance in the 11th minute through a set-piece situation, however, Nguyen Van Truong wasted the opportunity, blasting his free-kick straight against the Qatari wall.
Qatar kept the pressure on the Vietnam backline but were let down by poor finishing with Rashid Al Abdulla and Mubarak Shanan both missing the target from inside the six-yard-box.
Vietnam continued to play a counter-attacking game and their plan almost bore fruit in the 37th minute when Nguyen Van Truong sent Van Cuong through into the box, however, the latter’s effort was saved by Qatar keeper Amir Hassan.
The Southeast Asian side’s persistence, however, paid off in the closing stages of the first half when Nguyen Van Truong sent a wonderful long ball to Nguyen Quoc Viet, who beat his marker before rounding Hassan to slot home the opener.
Qatar picked up the tempo at the start of the second half with Al Hashmi Al Hussain missing with a headed attempt in the 51st minute.
Vietnam should have scored six minutes later when Nguyen Van Truong set up Nguyen Thanh Nhan nicely inside the Qatari box but the midfielder was foiled by Hassan.

Qatar continued to pile on the pressure and should have equalised in the 70th minute but Jassem Al Sharshani floated Ayoub Mohamed Aloui’s weighted pass high above the bar.
Qatar were thrown a lifeline in the 83rd minute when they were awarded a penalty following a foul on Al Rawi, who then converted the spot-kick to level the score.
Vietnam, however, saved the best for last as they replied in the 90th minute through Nguyen Van Truong’s header off Nguyen Duc Phu to seal a thrilling win which took them within touching distance of the knockout stage.