Vietnam held to a 1-1 tie with Iraq after the last-gasp penalty kick

October 09, 2015 | 09:11

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The hosts Vietnam missed a win in the 2018 World Cup’s Asian qualifying game with Iraq today in Hanoi as it remained the 1-0 advantage till the last minute of the match when the visitors scored a goal from the penalty kick to level it 1-1.

Cong Vinh opened the score for his host team Vietnam at the 25th minute following a sharp coordination between the striker and midfielder Trong Hoang.

Holding the ball on the left side on home soil, Trong Hoang dribbled it near the Iraqi box on the right side before passing it to Cong Vinh.

Vinh swiftly made his way between two rival defenders to receive the ball and slotted the ball into the near corner on the left of the Iraqi woodwork.

Goalkeeper Nguyen Manh made great contribution to the performance of Vietnam today after refusing at least three clear chances by Iraqi visitors, who pushed up their formation during the last 25 minutes of the match in hope of finding a goal to level the game.

The match was added five extra minutes and in the last-gasp moment of the match, Iraq was awarded a penalty kick since the ball hit the hand of a Vietnamese defender in his box.

Iraq didn’t miss the chance to level the game 1-1. And Australian referee gave the whistle to end the match right after that.

After three games in the 2018 World Cup’s Asian qualifying Group F, Vietnam are now ranking third in the group with four points. Earlier, Vietnam beat Taiwan 2-1 and lost 1-0 to Thailand.

The Thais have earned seven points, while Iraq have accumulated five points, and Taiwan zero.

Vietnam will next take on Thailand on October 13 in the last match round of the qualifying group.

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