Vietnam streets overflow as football fans go to town over Asian Games history
By Staff reporters
Downtown streets in major Vietnamese cities were awash with the national colors of red and yellow on Monday night.
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National flags flew high in Hanoi as fans celebrated the country's quarterfinal victory over Syria at Asian Games in Indonesia on Monday night. Coach Park Hang-seo and the boys have done the nation proud. Photo by Gia Chinh |
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Hanoi burns bright on Monday night. Photo by Ba Do |
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Fans in Da Nang were as high-spirited as their brethren in other parts of the country. Photo by Nguyen Dong |
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10:10 p.m. The Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc Square in Hanoi filled up in no time after Vietnam beat Syria in its first even Asian Games quarterfinal match. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh
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The Vietnamese men’s football team repeated a historic feat, beating Syria on extra time to reach the Asian Games semifinal on Monday.
Vietnam soared into euphoria as Nguyen Van Toan, wearing jersey number 8, tapped the ball in, collecting a rebound off the crossbar in the 108th minute.
By defeating Syria in the quarterfinal match, it will enter the semifinal and play against South Korea in the at 4 p.m. on August 29.
After the game, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Ngoc Thien announced a reward of VND500 million ($4,300) for the players and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc sent a congratulatory message to the team.
The Asian Games is the world's second biggest multiple sports event (after the Olympics). This year’s edition, held in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia, has drawn 16,000 competitors and officials from 45 nations.