Vietnam Football Hot News Today April 11: Assistant Coach Popov Criticizes FIFA Referee; Vietnam Futsal Competes for Bronze Medal with Australia

Vietnam Football Hot News Today April 11: Assistant Coach Popov Criticizes FIFA Referee; Vietnam Futsal Competes for Bronze Medal with Australia.

Assistant Coach Popov Criticizes FIFA Referee

Coach Velizar Popov reacted to the referee and was stripped of his coaching rights at the end of the match where The Cong Viettel defeated Thanh Hoa 1-0.

At the press conference, assistant Nguyen Van Bien stated: "Coach Popov was only talking to the players. He merely asked the referee why Thanh Hoa didn't receive a red card. The assistant referee said one sentence, that it's football, then called the main referee to issue a red card to dismiss Popov. Even someone as calm as me feels aggrieved. It's truly unjust.

Everything on the field was crystal clear, everyone saw it. Even someone who doesn't understand football knows what kind of situation that was. I respectfully refrain from commenting on the referee's decision.

I am very displeased with the red card given to my head coach. A FIFA referee behaving improperly like that is unacceptable."

The 1-0 victory over Thanh Hoa helps The Cong Viettel continue to chase CAHN Club in the championship race.

Vietnam U20 Has Goal Nominated for Best in Group Stage

The goal by midfielder Nguyen Thi Thuy Linh against Thailand U20 women's team has been nominated by AFC for voting as the best goal in the group stage of the 2026 Women's U20 Asian Cup.

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) website recently included Nguyen Thi Thuy Linh's goal, from the Vietnam women's U20 national team, in the nomination list for voting the "Best Goal of the Group Stage" of the 2026 Women's U20 Asian Cup held in Thailand.

The goal from near midfield by Nguyen Thi Thuy Linh into the host Thailand women's U20 team's net at the 51st minute received special attention.

This situation clearly demonstrates the observation ability, decisiveness in finishing, and the unyielding spirit of the Vietnam women's U20 players.

AFC's voting list also includes many other notable goals. Among them is the direct free-kick by captain Rinyaphat Moondong into the Vietnam women's U20 team's net at the 90+3 minute, securing a 4-1 victory for Thailand women's U20.

Vietnam Futsal Competes for Bronze Medal with Australia

The Vietnam futsal team lost to Indonesia 2-3 and will have to play the third-place match of the Southeast Asian futsal championship against Australia at 5:00 PM on April 12.

After trailing 2-0, in the second half, the efforts of the Vietnam futsal team were quickly rewarded. At minute 22, from a free-kick situation, Tu Minh Quang assisted Nguyen Da Hai to unleash a powerful shot, reducing the score to 1-2. Indonesia continued to show efficiency in counterattacks by scoring to raise the score to 3-1 just one minute later.

At minute 31, from a sideline kick situation, Cong Dai decisively finished, reducing the score to 2-3, reigniting hope for the home team. The following minutes witnessed a series of opportunities created, notably Nguyen Da Hai's shot hitting the post after a quick combination.

At the end of the match, the Vietnam futsal team deployed the power-play tactic to seek an equalizing goal. Despite playing with full effort, Coach Diego Giustozzi's players still could not penetrate the opponent's defense one more time.