Russia’s head coach, Valery Karpin, expressed satisfaction with his team’s 3-0 victory over Vietnam and the absence of any injuries during their friendly match at Mỹ Đình Stadium on the evening of September 5.
“We had to take a long flight to Hanoi and play in weather conditions completely different from what we’re used to. That’s why we started the match slowly, focusing on defense, probing the opposition, and then picking up the pace, pushing forward, and scoring,” Karpin said.
The Russian coach also considered the 90 minutes against Vietnam to be a valuable and enjoyable warm-up for his squad. “We achieved almost all the goals we set for this match, and most importantly, the team didn’t suffer any injuries,” he added.
Russia arrived in Hanoi just about 26 hours before kick-off, leaving them little time to acclimate to the high temperature and humidity, which was anticipated to be a challenge for the team. However, with a FIFA ranking 81 places above Vietnam, Russia remained the superior side.
The European team opened the scoring in the 24th minute with a header from Daler Kuzyayev. Early in the second half, Russia’s fitness levels began to dip, giving Vietnam a brief upper hand, and they came close to equalizing. However, a major error from Vietnam’s goalkeeper, Van Lam Dang, who mishit a back pass, allowed Russia to double their lead in the 61st minute.
In the 77th minute, Russia sealed the 3-0 victory with a well-coordinated move from the right side of the penalty box, culminating in a cross from captain Ivan Oblyakov, which Musayev tapped in for the final goal. As Vietnam pressed forward in the closing minutes, Russia endured a few nervous moments, but they managed to maintain their three-goal lead until the final whistle.
Karpin downplayed the impact of the error from Van Lam that led to Russia’s second goal. “There may have been a mistake from the goalkeeper, but the defender was also at fault. On the field, nothing is perfect, and such situations happen. I don’t think that goal had a significant impact on the overall result. The important thing is that we had already scored before that,” the 55-year-old coach commented.
For Karpin, the weather posed the greatest challenge for his players, prompting him to make his first substitution in the 34th minute, bringing Khlusevich on for Morozov, who couldn’t cope with the heat. “We scored three goals but missed several other opportunities. If this game had been played in Russia, where the weather is much cooler, we wouldn’t have been satisfied with the result. But given today’s conditions, I’m okay with it,” Karpin explained.
When asked to evaluate the Vietnamese team, Karpin was cautious in his response. “If we compare their level with the European teams we’ve faced, Vietnam is not yet strong. However, they do have some good players and created a few dangerous chances. I believe they will improve if they focus on their fitness,” he noted.
Looking ahead to the next match against Thailand at 8:00 PM on September 7, Karpin hinted that Russia might use a different starting lineup, including star goalkeeper Matvei Safonov, who plays for PSG and was on the bench for the game against Vietnam.
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