Vietnamese midfielder’s goal selected most iconic

Nguyen Quang Hai with his super goal ‘Rainbow in the Snow’ in the final between Vietnam and Uzbekistan in the AFC U23 Championship 2018. (Photo: vietnamnet.vn)

 Vietnamese midfielder Nguyen Quang Hai’s goal ‘Rainbow in the Snow’ in the final between Vietnam and Uzbekistan in the AFC U23 Championship 2018 has been chosen as the most iconic goal of the tournament.

After seven days of vote through the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) website, Hai’s stunning free kick received 1,159,847 votes or 79.1 percent of the total ballots.

It was a long way ahead of Iran's Mahdi Torabi strike which came second in the list with 298,037 votes.

As the AFC U23 Championship Thailand 2020 kicks off in just a few weeks, the AFC picked eight of the finest goals in the competition since the first edition in Oman in 2014 giving fans the chance to pick the best.

According to the AFC, while Uzbekistan won the tournament, Hai captured the imagination and his goal in the final – one of five superb goals by the midfielder during the tournament – provided one of the most iconic moments the competition has ever seen.

Earlier, the AFC also chose five memorable matches from the previous editions of the tournament including two matches of Vietnam.

The first was the match with Iraq in the quarter-finals in which Vietnam won 5-3 on penalties after the two sides tied 3-3 during 120 minutes.

The win saw millions of people take to the streets in Hanoi, Da Nang and HCM City. Vietnam's incredible quarter-final victory over Iraq captured the hearts of the ASEAN nation.

The remaining match was the historic final between Vietnam and Uzbekistan.

According to the AFC, a match that had everything including the iconic 'Rainbow in the Snow' goal that went down in Vietnamese footballing folklore. It was the end of the remarkable campaign for the ASEAN country, one which will live long in the hearts of their supporters, and it was a deserving finale to conclude a memorable tournament.

Vietnam’s U23 team are in HCM City for training before leaving for the event which is set to take place from January 8 to 26 next year. Vietnam are in Group D with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Jordan and the UAE./.

VNA