Phnom Penh: Coach Leonardo Vitorino has labelled Cambodia’s trip to the My Dinh Stadium on Tuesday as the 'most important game' in the final round of qualifiers for the AFC Asian Cup 2019 UAE as the visitors look to keep pace with second-placed Vietnam in Group C.
Cambodia recovered from losing their opener 7-0 in Jordan just a week after Brazilian Vitorino was appointed with a historic 1-0 home win over Afghanistan in June.
But after conceding in the 81st minute of September’s 2-1 defeat at home by Vietnam, Cambodia find themselves two points behind Tuesday’s hosts with only two games remaining after next week and only the top two finishers securing qualification for the 24-team tournament in the United Arab Emirates.
Table-toppers Jordan are no means out of sight despite an unbeaten record after three games with the 2015 qualifiers a further two points clear of Vietnam, although it is Tuesday’s trip to Hanoi that is the main focus for Vitorino following last Wednesday’s encouraging 3-1 friendly defeat by Indonesia.
“This game is a kind of a final, it is a key match for if we win, we will still have a chance to qualify, but if we lose, it will leave us down,” said 43-year-old Vitorino, who has previously worked in Trinidad and Tobago, Qatar, Thailand and Laos.
“It will be a good game as they have good players. Our league is not strong, but we are confident that the players can play well.
“We played well in the last game against Vietnam, but we lost concentration at the end of the game. It will be the most important game in the qualifiers.”
In the opening fixture between the pair last month, Nguyen Van Quyet opened the scoring for the visitors after just four minutes at the National Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh only for Chan Vathanaka to quickly hit back for the home side.
But with Vietnam dominating the second half, Nguyen Quang Hai’s late header ensured the unbeaten visitors claimed a first win in the final round of qualifiers to leapfrog Cambodia in the table.
“Individually Vietnam are very good technically and like Thailand. I worked in Thailand and they are close to Thai players, including the midfield players who are very experienced,” added Vitorino.
“Also the supporters love football, just like Cambodia, and the stadium will be full. But it will be good for us as playing against big teams in a full stadium will make it a great game and a chance to make history outside of our home and we need to give 100 percent. We need to be organised as it is important and this is how we will win.”
Vitorino has been encouraged by signs of growth since replacing Korea Republic’s Lee Tae-hoon in March as Cambodia seek to secure what would only be a second-ever AFC Asian Cup appearance - having featured for the first time in 1972.
“We played against Indonesia and it was very important because I was trying a new formation in the second half, which is how I want to play against Vietnam, and the second half was good,” said Vitorino.
“It was a friendly, but we used it as training as we made substitutions and tried two different systems. In the second half we had more possession and played more in the front and the balance between defence and attack was better.
“Against Indonesia we had 51 percent possession against a strong team, so this team is progressing.
“We beat Afghanistan at home for the first time in our history, but I want more and to make more history.
“Cambodia has changed a lot and is developing for the future with so many young players and that is the way for progress and the future of Cambodia.”
Photos: AFC
Source: the-afc.com