Vietnam coach Kim Sang-sik is determined to avoid the issues that saw the champions fail to score in their previous home match in the ASEAN Hyundai Cup™ 2026 when they look to confirm their progress to the semi-finals against Cambodia in Hanoi on Friday.
The Golden Star Warriors were held to a 0-0 draw by Singapore when they last played at the Mỹ Đình National Stadium but bounced back to make a statement 3-0 win over Indonesia in Bogor that took Kim’s side into pole position in Group A with one round of matches remaining.
A draw on Friday with the Cambodians would be enough to take Vietnam into the last four but Kim wants his team to secure a third victory in their final group fixture.
“Our first objective is to win tomorrow’s match because we want to finish top of the group,” said Kim. “We did not score in our previous home match against Singapore, which was disappointing. Tomorrow, we will try harder to produce a better attacking performance.”
Kim made several changes to his starting line-up for the game against Indonesia with regular captain Nguyễn Quang Hải and Nguyễn Xuân Son, the leading scorer at the 2024 tournament, dropped to the bench and the move paid off handsomely for the Vietnamese.
“We did not take our opportunities against Singapore. After that match, we worked very hard and prepared carefully, which helped us achieve a good result against Indonesia,” said Kim.
“Several players received opportunities to start that match and performed very well. That showed the importance of every player understanding the team’s system and fulfilling their role. We will continue working in the same way as we prepare for Cambodia.”
Vietnam lead Singapore on goal difference with both nations on seven points from three matches with Indonesia in third a point adrift. Neither Cambodia, in fourth, nor fifth-placed Timor-Leste can qualify for the semi-finals.
The Cambodians go into the meeting with the title holders off the back of a 3-0 win over Timor-Leste and coach Koji Gyotoku is hoping his team can close out their ASEAN Hyundai Cup™ 2026 campaign with another positive performance. However, they have a dismal record against Vietnam, losing all seven previous encounters in the tournament that is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.
“Unfortunately, we can no longer qualify for the semi-finals. However, we still have another match to play, and we hope to gain valuable experience from facing Vietnam,” he said.
“We have had some challenges with the squad, but we performed well against Timor-Leste. There is now a good atmosphere within the team, and I believe we are continuing to make progress. We will try to produce another good performance against Vietnam.”
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