Hanoi: Vietnam coach Park Hang-seo has denied he is under pressure to deliver the win against Afghanistan that would seal qualification for the Finals of the AFC Asian Cup 2019 when the teams face off in their Group C qualifying match in Hanoi’s My Dinh Stadium on Tuesday evening.
Park’s team are level on eight points from four games with Jordan at the top of the standings and take on Afghanistan knowing victory would seal a berth at the Finals in the United Arab Emirates in 2019.
Despite the prospect of qualifying for the first time since the country’s unification in 1976 and securing their first appearance at the Finals since co-hosting the tournament in 2007,
Park claims there have been no demands for three points from the federation.
“I know that this is a very important game for both teams,” said the coach from Korea Republic.
“The Vietnam Football Federation leaders did not tell me that we must win this game, but I always think about a victory before any game so my players and I will try our best to win the game.
“The Vietnam team are 30 positions higher than Afghanistan on the FIFA rankings and we also have home advantage, so of course our supporters want the team to win this game.
“We have good preparation although the time is quite short. So I just need our players to show their best performance and then we can get three points”.
Afghanistan sit at the bottom of the standings with just two points but the teams shared the spoils with a 1-1 draw when they met on Matchday One and coach Otto Pfister believes his side are capable of matching the Vietnamese again.
“Vietnam are at a higher position on the FIFA rankings, but I am sure that we are at the same level as them,” said the experienced German. “I don’t think that tactics will decide the result of the game, but the players’ standard and performance.
“I know that Vietnam have a new head coach, but that will not be a problem for us. I think that the Vietnam team are the same as they were in the last game against our team.
“We are satisfied with the conditions here, the field, the weather. Everything is better than the games that we have to play at ‘home’ but in another country. So I think that anything can happen in this game.”
Jordan, meanwhile, travel to Cambodia knowing a draw will be enough for the two-time quarter-finalists to secure their place in the Finals and assistant coach Jamal Abu Abed is warning his side need to avoid complacency if they are to secure the three points.
“We should be able to get a positive result against Cambodia if we have our usual performance,” he said.
“We can’t compare Cambodian football to what we have in Jordan but if we underestimate our opponents, we could have a surprising result.
“History is not enough and we should respect our opponents if we want to win and this means that we should give all our best in order to get the three points.”
Cambodia go into the game under new coach Prak Sovannara after Brazilian Leonardo Vitorino left his role following a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Vietnam on Matchday Four and the 45-year-old is hoping his side can bounce back from a friendly loss at the hands of Myanmar last week.
“It’s not what I hoped and not the best way to start my tenure as coach again,” said Sovannara, who is taking the team’s reins for the third time, of the Myanmar defeat.
“But I know there are things we need to change and to improve to be competitive against our rivals.
"Jordan will be a difficult match of course. They showed their level against us in our last meeting. But we are at home and the home support will be important."
Photos: AFC
Source: the-afc.com