Vietnam will try to draw against Australia: coach Park

“The team have lost all six games and haven’t earned any point. Australia, our opponent tomorrow, are standing third in the group and they really want to use the home advantage to win against us. Of course, as the away team, we still want something to bring back home. Vietnam will try to get a point in Melbourne,” Park said at a press conference on Wednesday.

Vietnam are still searching for the first point in the final round of World Cup qualifiers, while Australia considered this game as a must-win because they are five points away from the top spot.

“It’s quite hard to find the weakness of a top team like Australia. I think they have more strengths than weaknesses. But any team have their own weakness. For us, I can say right away that Vietnam players don’t have the physique like Australia. Despite this disadvantage, we are ready to get the best result,” Park added.

Vietnam will play Australia without the strongest lineup. Nguyen Tuan Anh, Ha Duc Chinh, Dang Van Lam, Doan Van Hau and Nguyen Trong Hoang are still in treatment for their injuries. Striker duo Nguyen Tien Linh and Nguyen Van Toan are stuck in quarantine after getting Covid-19, while additional attackers Tran Phi Son and Ngan Van Dai couldn’t join the team due to visa problems.

Due to the shortage of strikers, Park will only have three choices left for that position in the game tomorrow. However, he is not worried about this issue.

“Although Linh and Toan couldn’t play, I’m not worried because they haven’t scored much in the final round of qualifiers. The team have worthy replacements. Let’s see their performance tomorrow,” Park said.

In the first leg at Vietnam’s My Dinh National Stadium, Australia won 1-0 with the only goal by Rhyan Grant.

The game kicks off at 4:10 p.m. Thursday (Hanoi time) and will be broadcasted live on VnExpress International.