Vietnam vs. Afghanistan Match Analysis and Prediction

by Bryce

4 years ago 736

On Wednesday, Vietnam will host Afghanistan at the Thong Nhat Stadium in Ho Chi Minh City for an international friendly kickoff at 1 pm.

The Golden Star Warriors will be looking to put their disappointing World Cup campaign behind them when they take on the Black Bears in their first game of the season.

Park Hang-SEO’s team has qualified for the 2023 Asia Cup on the bright side. This is the first time that the Southeast Asian team has secured back-to-back qualifications.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan has yet to book its place in the competition and will be in action next month in the third round of qualifiers against India, Hong Kong, and Cambodia in Group B.

The quality of Vietnam’s players in all positions makes them a formidable opponent. Their recent games against Japan and China have been close, but they are expected to prevail over Afghanistan, who haven’t played many matches lately.

Vietnam vs. Afghanistan Head to Head

Both sides have clashed only twice in history, with two meetings coming in the previous 2018 Asian Cup qualifiers that ended in a draw. Here is a look at their previous encounters:

Home

Japan 1-1 Vietnam
Vietnam 0-1 Oman
Vietnam 3-1 China
Australia 4-0 Vietnam
Thailand 0-0 Vietnam

Away

Afghanistan 0-1 Japan U23
Afghaninstan 1-0 Indonesia
India 1-1 Afghanistan
Afghanistan 1-2 Oman
Bangladesh 1-1 Afghaninstan

Vietnam Team News

The Golden Warriors have called up 23 players, including goalkeeper Dang Van Lam, for their friendly against Afghanistan. Lam is the only foreign-based player, plying his trade with the Japanese side Cerezo Osaka.

Afghanistan Team News

The Lions of Khorasan has called up 22 players for their match against Vietnam, 13 based in Europe. Goalkeeper Hellal Hosainie and midfielder Habibulla Askar could earn their first caps for the national team.

Prediction and Odds

Meanwhile, Afghanistan has been playing less than their opponents, so they might be out of practice. Since this is a home game for the Golden Star Warriors, they should win.