Football
An official draw of the AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2022 is expected to take place from December 23, 2022, to January 15, 2023. Photo zing.vn
HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam is in Group B with Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar and Laos at this year's AFF Cup after the draw conducted on August 30 afternoon in Bangkok, Thailand.
In Group A, Thailand will play Indonesia, Cambodia, the Philippines and the winner of a play-off match between Timor Leste and Brunei. The play-off will take place in a home-away format. Brunei will play at home first.
Việt Nam and Thailand are ranked as the number one seeds in their groups.
The cup's new name is the AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2022. The tournament will take place from December 23, 2022, to January 15, 2023.
AFF Cup President Khiev Sameth said: "The AFF Cup has always been the crown jewel of regional football. We welcome this year's tournament. The past two years have been difficult times. But it makes us all stronger and more united. The AFF Cup 2021 was successfully held. We hope this year will be the same."
The group stage will take place in a round-robin format. Each team will play four, including two away matches and two home matches, to determine the top two teams to advance to the semi-finals.
From the semi-finals, matches will take place in the home-away format of two games. The away goals rule will be applied to determine the winner if there is a draw after the first and second legs.
"Before the draw, Việt Nam has determined to prepare the best for the tournament, so whatever group we are in, we will strive for the highest result," said Việt Nam Football Federation General Secretary Lê Hoài Anh.
"Việt Nam has twice won the tournament and was the only Southeast Asian team to advance to the 2022 FIFA World Cup's third qualification. These achievements help us to receive respect from other teams.
"However, all squads in Southeast Asia have made strong progress in recent years, remarkably narrowing the gap between teams. In my opinion, teams in two groups are pretty equal in power. Teams using their home match advantage will secure their berth in the next round."
In 2020, Thailand beat Indonesia 6-2 in the two-leg final to take the trophy. VNS
OVietnam