U.23 Vietnam bid farewell to the 2024 Asian U.23 tournament in the quarterfinals after losing 0-1 to U.23 Iraq, in the match that took place at 0:30 on April 27. Coach Hoang Anh Tuan and his team not only failed, but also ended the match with only 10 people on the field.
At minute 90+1, defender Nguyen Manh Hung rushed in and kicked the Iraqi U.23 player’s leg in a dispute at the corner flagpole. Initially, referee Ko Hyung-jin did not show a red card, but after hearing advice from VAR, the black-shirted king reviewed the situation.
Manh Hung was shown a red card after a rough tackle
After that, the Korean referee decided to draw a red card and disqualify Manh Hung. With only 10 people, U.23 Vietnam could not find an equalizer for nearly 13 minutes of extra time, then stopped the game.
Notably, this is the fourth time at the Asian U.23 playground that U.23 Vietnam received a red card in the final match of the tournament. More worth mentioning, there was a coincidence between the last 3 players who were disqualified in the final match of U.23 Vietnam in the U.23 Asia tournament. That is, these players all play in defense and all wear shirt number 21.
In the U.23 Asia 2020 finals, U.23 Vietnam lost 1-2 to U.23 North Korea in the final match of the group stage. Center-back Tran Dinh Trong received a red card in this match and he wore shirt number 21 – a number that has accompanied Dinh Trong through many large and small tournaments.
Quan Van Chuan and Tran Dinh Trong both wore shirt number 21 when they were disqualified in the final match of Vietnam U.23 tournament.
In the 2022 U.23 Asia finals, U.23 Vietnam lost 0-2 to U.23 Saudi Arabia in the quarterfinals. Goalkeeper Quan Van Prepared for a red card and he also wore shirt number 21. In the match that just ended, coincidentally, midfielder Manh Hung was disqualified. He also wears shirt number 21.
U.23 Vietnam also had to leave the 2016 U.23 Asia tournament with a red card match, which was a competition with U.23 UAE, when Luong Xuan Truong and Nguyen Nam Anh were both disqualified. Obviously, the fact that 4 of the last 5 finals had to leave the tournament with red cards is a lesson about calm and maturity that U.23 Vietnam must remember for the rest of their lives.
